Nemesis One Half
by Sub-Zero879
Summary: Happosai meant to just punish Ranma for his insolence. What went in as an aspiring martial artist, however, came back as a battle-hardened male Senshi of the deceased planet Nemesis. And no one could prepare themselves for the trouble that followed him.
1. Prologue

Summary: Happosai meant to just punish Ranma for his insolence. What went in as an aspiring martial artist, however, came back as a battle-hardened male Senshi of the deceased planet Nemesis. And no one could prepare themselves for the trouble that followed him. Ranma/BSSM/Demonata crossover.

Pairing: Normally I'm very blunt and open about this. This time, however, you are better off just knowing: Ranma/harem. If you like that sort of thing, read on, if not then it's reasonable to turn around here. The only specifics I'll give is that it is none of the fiancees.

Changes in Universes:

_Ranma: _There is a restructuring in the histories of the Phoenix people and the Amazons.

_Sailor Moon:_ The Moon Kingdom has become a prejudiced and corrupt kingdom, with only an illusion of utopian peace. Additionally, Princess Serenity's mother, the queen, has been redesigned and turned into my own character, by the name of Crystal Serenity. Magic has been altered to accommodate Demonata-style magic. There are a couple of other changes you'll notice as well, if you are a die hard fan.

(Not really necessary to have read for this fic)_ Demonata:_ Kah-Gash has been removed. Death (Shadow) has been redesigned into a concept of an Incarnate, in his case the Incarnate of Death, Death given physical form. While Death plays little to no part in this fic, the idea behind an Incarnate stays. Also, since there is no Kah-Gash, Bec's sudden increase of powers in the fourth book is something Lord Loss can _do_ to people, if he chooses.

**Disclaimer:** Ranma One Half and all components do not belong to me. Sailor Moon and all components do not belong to me. Demonata and all components do not belong to me. In all fairness, the worlds merged and expanded within this work of fanfiction do not belong to me. This is nonprofit, simply entertainment expanding on others ideas. Give them the credit, not myself.

Wording:

-"Talking"

-_Thoughts_

-**"Deep Voice"**

-"(Panda Sign)"

* * *

Nemesis One Half: Prologue

* * *

Ranma had been having an extraordinarily lucky day, thus far.

To anyone else, that would translate to an extraordinarily _normal_ day. No freak water accidents to activate his curse; no sudden conflicts with his rivals; no jealous confrontations with his fiancées; no strange contact with magical artifacts. In short, the day had been entirely normal, as was standard to any of eighteen year old youth in Tokyo at the time.

It was almost unnerving, to be honest.

That's why he was almost glad when Akane punted him high and far, for a reason _slightly_ his fault. Presently, he was lying with his back in a concrete crater, just a few feet off from a fountain. This park had turned into a common landing zone for him, as was evident by the many other craters littering the general area, though strangely those other impacts were concentrated in the fountain, not outside like today's landing.

Gracefully picking himself up, Ranma again had that flash of unease caused by this lack of the usual chaos surrounding his life. All this good luck was appearing almost ominous.

Ranma then begin his return home from his detour in Juuban back to Nerima, his own district. The distance between the two could only be covered by the subway... or Akane's mallet. Knowing his luck, Ranma figured he wouldn't have enough yen for the transaction, after both buying his lunch at school and the dealings he often had with Nabiki. He could, in an incredible display of martial arts, jump from roof to roof all the way home. Unfortunately, that took energy – energy he usually needed to fend off the daily problems and chaos that filled his life.

But then, to Ranma's surprise and growing fear, he _did_ have enough money for the subway ticket. Wordlessly, he bought the ticket and boarded the transport, and though he didn't really believe in superstitions, he couldn't help but wonder what this could mean for him.

It was an hour later Ranma finally shuffled his way through the door at the Tendo Dojo, currently with a drenched shirt yet very male. To his surprise, he entered the house to find everyone asleep save Kasumi, despite twilight just finishing outside.

Kasumi saw his wet state of dress and brought him a towel as he removed his shirt. Exasperated amusement tinging her voice, she asked, "Was it the water pipes again?"

Ranma smirked, but then shook his head as he dried himself. "It splashed me, of course, but that ain't all that happened. Some ramen chef chose that exact moment to empty out his hot water. It's kinda creepy, if you ask me." He shook his head an let the towel hang over his shoulders and shrugged. "Today's been too... _normal_ for my taste. I'm telling you, something big is gonna happen soon. I can feel it."

Across the district, a small man slipped a bag off his shoulders. With a tired sigh, Happosai began rummaging through his sack, for once not filled solely with girls' undergarments. A slip of paper and a pair of scrolls took his attention for a time, then he nodded to himself.

"Ah, Ranma, my student, you have come along nicely," the aged master mused aloud. "Now for the final test."

With that, the little man shouldered his bag and began heading back to the dojo. Of course, the kinds of tests Happosai had weren't something one would _want_ to pass.

XxX

Ranma shook the final hazes of sleep off just in time to land on his feet, surprisingly a few feet away from the koi pond. With an arrogant smirk, he shouted, "Your aim's getting rusty, Old Man!"

Soon, a panda jumped out the window and began to lay into Ranma. As they fought, it became clear that Ranma was going to win. Although, with the underhandedness that Ranma should have been used to, the panda did a sneaky move. It's furry foot slammed right between his legs after a feinted punch. The panda then held up a sign that read, "(That's why you _let_ yourself fall into the koi pond. I call it, the Saotome Boy Remover!)" With a final grunt, the panda headed off towards the kitchen.

The poor boy didn't have the strength to retaliate as he was currently clutching the hurting spot like its recovery meant his life. After a few moments, he managed to make small steps back into the dojo, hoping he still had enough energy to fend off the panda. Kasumi brought in the food and the fights began again.

Later, both Ranma and Akane headed together to Furinken High. Along the way, Ranma was almost horrified to not have any encounters along the way. To add to this, the old lady with the ladle poured the water just in front of him as they passed. By then, even Akene noticed how... not normal things were. It appeared yesterday's strangeness was continuing to today as well.

The two arrived at the school on time, surprising both of them. They went through their classes without any interruptions. At lunch time, however, things manged to roughly to reach a semblance of normality, much like yesterday. Right _after_ Ranma had finished eating, Akane marched up to him again, mallet drawn this time, and before he could sputter out a divergence, she hit him off into LEO.

The moment the shock of the blow went away, Ranma saw Akane watching him go. He could have sworn he saw her mouth the words, "Good luck," before he was too far to make anything else out. He considered it for a moment, before shaking his head in confusion.

_What was _that_ for?_ he asked himself. Usually Akane had some reason or other to hit him, like Ukyo or Shampoo glomping him and feeding him, but to his current knowledge he hadn't done anything wrong this time. He shrugged, feeling the wind whip at him as his flight began its descent. It had been some time since those blows and the landings actually caused him any harm. It was almost like a form of the Bakusai Tenketsu's training or something.

The ground was coming closer, so Ranma shifted himself mid-flight to see his destination. It was the park again, of course, somewhere near the center. Though none of the few people there appeared near the fountain, Ranma gave a warning shout anyways, "LOOK OUT BELOW!"

And then he hit.

Ranma grunted as his body punched yet another hole in the concrete, yet the wind was barely knocked out of him for all his speed. Bakusai Tenketsu training indeed. He contented himself with lying there for a moment, recovering from the shock of impact, then pulled himself to his feet.

So, Juuban again, was it? Ranma noted as he glanced around at his surroundings. Yet again, as he was coming to expect from a day like this, his landing was outside of the fountain's waters, leaving him in his birth form. His hands went into his pockets, looking to see if he had any loose change again.

His good luck ended there.

"Ranma!" an aged voice hollered, and then Ranma's danger sense went haywire.

He turned just in time to block a blow from a small pipe, wielded by an equally small man. He spun with the block, allowing him to face the man when he landed. "Happosai..." Ranma drawled, clenching and unclenching his fist, testing his body for any impairments. "Wha'dya want, ya old freak?"

"Fight me, Ranma!" Happosai growled, then leaped in again.

Ranma met him, and the two exchanged viciously quick blows before separating. The coot was skilled, Ranma knew, and his body hurt from the blows more so than from his fall. That was all the time he had before they reengaged, Ranma forcing himself to give as good as he got.

Since they were using the same school of martial arts, neither was immediately able to gain the upper-hand. The hits they managed to score were easily shrugged off. Ranma managed to dodge a strike and knock the grandmaster into the dirt; the retaliating strike made the wind leave him in a rush. Still they fought on.

True to the typical Saotome-style, Ranma had been slinging insults from the start. However, nothing he said managed to get a rise out of Happosai. Nothing to start a _Hiryuu Shoten Ha_ with. With mounting determination, Ranma prepared himself for a fight with no quick win.

Another brief separation, then the two masters of aerial combat leaped up to meet each other in the air. Growing frustrated, Ranma started using some of his special attacks. _"KACHU TENSHIN AMAGURIKEN!"_ Hundreds of lightning fast punches impacted Happosai, yet he seemed unfazed as he responded with his pipe, expertly tapping some of Ranma's pressure points.

Ranma cursed as his left arm went numb, but he didn't falter in his returning assault. This particular disability would cure itself in a few seconds, so he focused on the defensive for a moment. Happosai was especially viscous, pressing his advantage, but Ranma preserved long enough for his arm to regain feeling.

A renewed exchanged between them was broken only by Ranma retreating a few paces back suddenly, and he held his hands before him. It was time for another technique. _"MOKO TAKABISHA!"_ A golden orb of confidence ki rocketed towards his opponent.

Happosai's determined face didn't falter, and a sudden slash of his pipe dissipated the ki attack. Ranma wasn't the only master of ki control here. As if to reestablish that fact, Happosai allowed his aura to flare into visibility. Brilliant gold surrounded his form, a confidence to match Ranma's own. And then, Happosai began to grow.

One technique he had yet to master, Ranma reflected as he dodged from place to place, was this resizing one his father, Soun, and Happosai all seemed to know. _I might need to work on it, if I find the time._ Falling for a feint, Ranma cursed and was forced blocked a massive punch. A rush of wind left him as the blow still took him off his feet and quite the distance backwards, out of the part and into the streets of Juuban.

_The old freak's got the strength to back the size, yet his speed remains just as fast. Even if it's only temporary, this technique could come in handy._ No time for further admiration, the giant Happosai – nearly twenty stories tall – reached him again.

XxX

For nearly two weeks, Hotaru had begged her parents for a picnic. Finally, _finally_ they had agreed, and today was the perfect day for it, with the sun shining not too hot and large fluffy clouds passing by lazily in the distance.

Hotaru, along with Haruka, Michiru, and even Setsuna herself, walked through the nearby park before choosing a spot near the fountain. Everything had seemed perfect. Until they heard a rather unusual shout.

"LOOK OUT BELOW!"

The small group located the sound, and they saw something in the sky falling fast. They tried guessing what it was. Haruka started, "It's a bird!"

Michiru gently argued, "It's a plane, dear."

It was Hotaru who finally recognized it. "No! It's-" They all winced with the sickening sound of it breaking through the concrete. "...a person." Hotaru finished weakly, horror beginning to seep in. She stood and quickly ran over to the spot of impact, with mad hopes of somehow healing the certainly dead man.

Setsuna had remained silent, her mind analyzing the situation with a sense of detachment. _Something like this should have caught my attention in the Time Gates. Why didn't I see this person?_

Just as Hotaru was about to reach the hole where the person landed, he suddenly stood up under his own power. With a small shrug, the unharmed man began walking away, brushing powder from his clothes. Wide-eyed, Hotaru came to a sudden halt.

Haruka immediately reached for her Henshin Rod, barely tilting her head towards Setsuna while her eyes remained locked on the retreating person. "What... What is he? I mean, he just walked out of a crater made from falling over a hundred feet in the sky!"

Setsuna's introspection was broken at that. _He got up?_ Looking at the boy walking away from them, her eyes narrowed and she also reached for her rod. Just as the Outers were about to transform, they saw the inhuman boy get attacked by a... leprechaun?

Hotaru scurried back to her parents and the group of them watched the fight with interest. Both the little _thing_ and the boy who had fallen were incredible fighters. They did things that looked impossible, even for Senshi. When energy blasts entered the fray, however, they knew those two weren't the everyday martial artists. However, before any of them could label them youma, the auras sprang loose from the fighters.

"They are human," Setsuna announced, then quickly explained the difference between human auras and demonic ones. But _visible_ auras? Even to her, that was a rare feat.

And then the small one transformed into a monster the size of most buildings. Without further hesitation, they transformed into their Senshi forms.

XxX

"You couldn't hit the broadside of a building like that, you old goat!" Ranma shouted. Inwardly, he sighed in frustration as nothing set the pervert off. How long would this technique last anyways? This was the longest Ranma had ever seen it held, and he had yet to discover an immediate counter to it.

Preparing for what would likely be another useless offensive, Ranma's whole world went ringing, stunning him as he went airborne. It felt like _train_ had hit him in the face or something, which could only mean one thing. Ranma grunted as he collided into another building, then shook his head to see for himself.

Ryoga was here, and he didn't look to be on the friendly side despite his grin. Next to his rival, who was popping his knuckles menacingly, were also Kuno, Moose, and even _Taro._ "Hey, what's your game, ya freak?" Ranma shouted, not understanding this sudden change in the fight. Happosai finally, thankfully, shrank back to his normal size. "I thought I was fighting _you."_

No further words were exchanged as with a loud battle cry, the small group of Ranma's most reoccurring enemies charged as one. Ranma sighed and prepared himself. Perhaps this is what all that ominous 'too normal to be true' feeling was leading to?

XxX

The Inners had been informed and teamed up with the Outers, though Setsuna had insisted that they all remain observers for now. Every combatant was undoubtedly human, if not normally so. As the fighting thickened and the brawl drew out, it became obvious this was only a knock-out fight – albeit between powerful opponents. They allowed themselves to relax, barely.

However, all this display of unheard of strength between so many proved significant, and they agreed to discuss the possibilities of what this could mean in the next meeting. They could, after all, be a threat to Crystal Tokyo.

XxX

Ranma felt near the end of his limits.

Kuno and Moosse both were easily taken care of. His rivals never had been able to work together efficiently, so he managed to take advantage of their disorganized teamwork and hold his own. His main problems were Ryoga, Taro, and Happosai, though after much pummeling even they seemed unsteady on their feet.

Except Happosai, Ranma recognized with a growl. Even after everything he had dealt out, the aged master still looked no closer to his own defeat. Even after his years in Nerima and fighting super powerful opponents, Ranma still wasn't strong enough to prove Happosai's match.

This was the end, however. Mind consciously beating back the black of unconsciousness, Ranma refused to be defeated easily. He didn't lose, after all. Panting, he focused himself the best he could and drew whatever ki he had left.

Taro's cursed form was the first to charge, and Ranma dodged the clumsy blow only to return it with a ki-enhanced punch directly to the face. Ranma felt his reserves trickle away to nothing, but he was satisfied after the sharp 'crack' as Taro was efficiently knocked out. Unconsciousness threatened him once again, and Ranma dodged Ryoga's strikes by muscle memory.

Finally, the haze in his eyes cleared enough to make out certain points on Ryoga's trapezius muscles and neck, and Ranma quickly tapped them. He smirked as Ryoga suddenly crumpled to the ground, unconscious thanks to pressure points. _Thanks, doc..._ Victorious, Ranma finally submitted to the blackness, and he followed Ryoga to the ground.

Happosai grinned at his star pupil. Everything he had hoped for and more. Picking up the unconscious Ranma, he bounded off towards the nearest forest.

XxX

Sailor Pluto frowned at the Time Gates. She couldn't find a single trace of the boy who had appeared at the park. Even checking the past showed them at their picnic, yet just after they all looked up it turned black.

_Black?_ Setsuna mused. Something about that nagged at the back of her mind. Something forgotten, or perhaps taught to her yet never experienced. There was something significant about this type of block.

That blackness followed the boy especially. It blocked everything about him, and distorted the things that were near him if she were to try and view him that way. She could see the park before he arrived and after he left. The street the most of the fight took place in before he entered it and after the small man left with him. She couldn't see where the two were now.

Giving up momentarily, she changed the view to the others involved in that brawl. Each of _their_ pasts could be traced, and showed up clearly to the Gates. She got their names, Moosse, Ryoga, Kuno, Pantyhose Taro, and Happosai. Very... unusual pasts, for all of them. Some very near disturbed her.

However, one thing they all had in common was that they presently lived in the district of Nerima, except for the one named Taro. Nerima...

Sailor Pluto sighed, stepping away from the images the Time Gates provided her to ponder. Nerima was an... interesting place. The entire district was distorted and sometimes blocked to the Gate's sight. She had discovered this anomaly nearly two years ago, when it had first began to cause problems. To be safe, she herself had inspected the area, finding only bizarre martial arts and other things of questionable nature, yet nothing evil or threatening to Crystal Tokyo.

That boy, the one Happosai had called Ranma in the fight, he was a similar anomaly to Nerima. Perhaps there was a connection there. Most likely, he was the cause of the district's disturbances in the first place. But did that mean he was a threat? Setsuna couldn't be sure. She stepped back up to the Gates, determined to find more on this boy.

XxX

Ranma slowly came to. After his senses returned one by one, he noticed that he was in a forest with Happosai. Said grandmaster looked over at him. "So, you're awake now, eh? Have some food." Happosai turned to reveal fresh roasted rabbit spitted over a campfire.

Ranma sat up slowly and readily accepted the food, his appetite not questioning why the old man was being nice. After finishing at his usual speeds, Ranma turned to Happosai for an explanation. "So what's the deal, ya old freak? Why'd ya bring my rivals in the fight?"

Happosai had a grin on his face as he answered, "Well, I have to admit, I'm impressed. I gathered them to fight you as a test. Needless to say, my boy, you passed." The grin that the letch had for once wasn't lecherous. In fact, it seemed pleased. Almost... _proud._

Ranma felt a little weirded out, but he remained cautious. "Test for what?"

The grin widened. "A test to see if you were ready to become a master of Anything Goes Martial Arts!" Ranma looked shocked. After a few moments of fish imitations, he got up and began to dance around singing about how great he was. "However!" continued Happosai, stopping Ranma suddenly, "there is still one final thing you must do before you achieve that rank."

Ranma put on a brave face. "Whatever it is, I can do it!" His dream was in sight! There was no way he'd fail now.

"That's the spirit," Happosai acknowledged, nodding his head. "Now, all you must do is..." Ranma tensed in anticipation, watching as Happosai reached into his gi. "Join my panty raid!" He whipped out a mask and a bag.

Ranma face-faulted. He got up and pointed at the perv. "No way! Uh-uh! I ain't gonna do nothin' like that!"

Happosai looked crushed. "Come on, Ranma! Your father did it! It's how he met your mom!"

Slightly sickened, Ranma could easily picture that in his mind:

_Genma sneaked around the house using the Umisenken. "Today's the day I become a master and leave that demon behind me!" Finding a drawer, he checked inside and found what he was looking for. He dropped the technique and began collecting them._

_He stopped cold when he felt a sword blade on his neck. He then heard a female voice being him, "What are you doing, _sir?"_ Her voice held ice. Nodoka then saw what he was collecting and yelled, "How manly!" GLOMP!_

Disgusted now, Ranma still insisted that he wasn't going to do it. Happosai began to get mad. "Ranma! As Grandmaster I order you to join me on a panty raid!" He threw one of the many bras on his person at Ranma and said, "Feel how soft they are... How can you _not_ want to come?"

"Like this!" Ranma used a Moko Takabisha to incinerate the stolen article.

Happosai's aura flared out, this time an angry red. "Rrrrrannnmaaaa! This is your final chance! Join me or suffer the consequences."

"If you put it that way... No!" Ranma let his own aura flare.

"It appears you've left me with no choice," Happosai growled, hands reaching inside his gi again. He pulled out two scrolls. One read "Pupil Punishment" and the other "Ancient Land of Pretty Ladies." He opened the pupil one and began to hill it with his ki. Ranma tensed, getting ready to react to whatever that scroll did.

Without warning, Happosai threw the scroll _at_ Ranma. He tried to dodge, but a sudden light reached out and swallowed him whole. Afterwords, no trace of Ranma remained.

Just then, Taro in his human form burst through the treeline, panting and red faced. He shouted, "Hey, are you going to change my name now, old man?"

Anger dying down, Happosai sighed and said, "Yeah, yeah. From now on, Pantyhose Taro shall forever be named Taro. Okay, now scram." He glanced at the now blank scroll that had caused Ranma's disappearance, then studied the other. A small blush rose on his cheeks, and he giggled slightly.

Feeling extremely relieved – this time it was official! - Taro began to leave before he stopped. He turned his head with a curious look in his eye. "Wait a second, what _were_ you doing before I got here?"

"Let's just say you don't have to worry about Ranma for awhile," Happosai muttered gleefully, as more and more thoughts of what was about to happen invaded his mind.

For a reason Happosai couldn't understand, Taro got... angry. "You _what?"_

Annoyed, he looked up from his pretty ladies scroll and at Taro. "I sent him into the realm of demons: Hell, as some people call it."

Taro fished out a flask of water. "You- You've gone too far, freak! Time to die." He poured the flask over his head, turning himself into an ox/person/crane/octopus.

However, before the hybrid could reach him, Happosai managed to poured ki into the now open "Ancient Land of Pretty Ladies" scroll and jump in. Taro let out an angry snort as Happosai got away in another burst of light, leaving behind a second blank scroll.

Silence had only just settled back into the forest when a new burst of light appeared. Two people fell back out. Taro's animalistic eyes widened in shock when he saw who they were. Instead of Ranma and Happosai, it was Ranma... and his _female_ form.

_Flashback, 20 years ago..._

_A drunken Happosai was sleeping. His two students, Soun and Genma, were trying to go through his stuff to make their torment a little less horrible. Finding a pair of scrolls, they looked at them. "Ancient Land of Pretty Ladies" and "Pupil Punishment." After nodding to each other, they switched the names of the scrolls and put them back._

XxX

Setsuna had found little in her search for information on this Ranma. The Ryoga involved in the earlier brawl had sworn revenge on him after a blackened year in middle school, for whatever reason. The Amazonian male apparently had lost his woman to him... That was about all she could find. Everything was too deep into Nerima for her to accurately discern.

Suddenly, there was a ripple across the Time Gates, one she could feel from within as well. A warning! Setsuna reached for her powers, desperate to counter whatever it was that was coming, but she was too late.

A horde of foreign memories invaded her mind, beyond her control to stop. However, one didn't reach her age and existence without learning a few tricks. As she had been taught, Setsuna isolated these new memories, regarding them as fake and would later be eliminated as soon as she fixed the interference to the past.

However, she was watching these memories even as she isolated them, and slowly her resolve began to wane. As the last few entered her mind, Setsuna's hold over the memories collapse, and she readily welcomed them as real. Against her will, Time had been altered, but for the better.

Setsuna _grinned_ in excitement.

XxX

At Usagi's home, a whole different set of memories lodged into the head of the princess. Her dream:

_Everywhere was white. Usagi looked around, not afraid of this blankness. The ground was like a mist, yet was solid enough to walk on. She heard muffled footsteps approaching and looked up to see who it was. Usagi gasped at who she saw. A beautiful woman with flowing, silver hair similar to her own had appeared in front of her. The woman carried an air of authority, a regal presence that had once belonged to nobility._

_This beautiful woman, Princess Serenity's mother, smiled at her, a reassuring smile that seemed to be holding something unnerving behind it. The former Queen explained her presence a touch sadly, "My child, forgive me but I'm afraid we must join our memories as one. Against my will I have been thrust into this future, in a way that we both cannot exist separately."_

_Without knowing it, Usagi nodded her acknowledgment and consent to Queen Serenity. The woman gave a last warm smile before closing her eyes and loads of foreign memories flowed into Usagi's head. Nearly an hour passed before the torrent slowed, and the two minds had become one._

'Usagi' woke up, crystalline eyes peering sadly at the ceiling above her. She muttered to herself, "I'm sorry, daughter. It appears my years so vastly outnumber yours that I became the dominate one." A closer look in the dark showed that 'Usagi's dark golden hair had lightened to a shimmering silver, now pale in the moonlight.

To keep her sudden appearance a secret, at least until things could be explained, the woman called forth magic in a spell to disguise her hair, turning it gold again.

XxX

For the seven other Senshi, new memories overrode and added to the already tremendous locked ones of the Silver Millennium. Things had changed, as the world was soon to find out.

* * *

AN: Well folks, two completed stories and a year later I'm back, and everything you ever thought you knew about this story is about to change. In short, Nemesis One Half is back to its original form, which goes against everything I had worked on for the last several years. For the many, many new peeps who are just now joining us and are confused as to what I'm talking about, that's okay. You are getting this story as it's meant to be read, so buckle up and get ready for a crazy ride. I intend to push this from here to the end, this time.

And before I get complaints, this story is entirely different and separate from Banishment (I don't know why people were getting that crazy idea that I was rewriting Banishment with this). Next chapter will make that fairly obvious. Speaking of chapters, my notes are telling me to expect ten of them, plus an epilogue. Additionally, they will all be quite large.


	2. Closing Old Wounds

Closing Old Wounds

_

* * *

To be honest, I can't really blame Happosai. It was the exact kind of thing he had always done, so why would he or anyone think it would end any differently? He'd try and get his way, I'd try and get mine, we'd beat each other up in the end, and life would go on as it always did. Except, this time it didn't. It couldn't. He had changed things beyond his understanding, irrevocably, and he had died for it._

_As for me... Well..._

XxX

Taro could only stare. The first was the male Ranma, looking strangely different in both features and dress but undeniably still his rival. The other... She wore even stranger clothes, some dirtied medieval garb better meant for a savage. Her crimson hair was vibrant, and her crystal blue eyes danced around wildly, full of fear and excitement.

What on Earth had happened to Ranma? Did he somehow split away from his cursed form?

And then two things happened. The first is, the male Ranma – looking _older_ now that Taro thought about it – saw his female form. The second, said girl finally caught sight of Taro. That was when things went to hell.

"Beryl!" Ranma shouted, his expression fierce and suddenly tensed. His left arm went up over his shoulder and swung down a... _scythe._ The wave of shock just rolled over the hybrid-cursed boy, already stunned as he was. Ranma rarely used weapons, let alone lethal ones.

The scythe was unusual, though. Dark green wood, either painted or from a tree Taro didn't recognize, while the blade stretched out wickedly, ebony is color. The hairline flaws from years of use showed the metal to be black all the way through, odd as that was. The oddest part of the weapon, however, was the spider-webbing of silver over the shaft. The vein-like strands came in thick bulges under Ranma's fingers, coiling their way around listlessly from tip to base.

So distracted was Taro by this change in Ranma that he almost didn't notice what the girl was doing in the meantime. As opposed to the male-half looking older, this girl was undoubtedly _younger._ Perhaps fifteen years old, very slender and small. And her hands were on fire. Literally. Red-orange flames glowed bright in the night sky, licking across her hands and fingers in what Taro was certain was a display of magic.

And her eyes were set dead on Taro, murder and hate obvious in those cold sapphires.

Faster than the baffled and now scared boy could believe, Ranma reacted. The girl was swept off her feet in the blink of an eye, and Ranma went with her, landing with his knee in her stomach and the wood of the shaft hard against her throat. The flames on her hands winked out in the flurry of motion, leaving little tendrils of smoke on her fingers. The girl's face twisted in surprise, pain, and panic.

Calm and controlled, despite his sudden movements, Ranma studied the girl weakly writhing under him, struggling to suck in a breath despite having the wind knocked out of her and the scythe strangling her. After a moment, his eyebrows furrowed and his stance shifted from deadly intent to wary curiosity.

"Not Beryl," he muttered finally, then tilted his head, callous to her waning resistance. "Who are you?"

He eased pressure off her throat, and the girl weakly drew in a small breath. Tears glistened in her eyes from the suffocation, and she panted out the breath before weakly drawing in another. Ranma waited patiently, knee still pinning her painfully, weapon still ready against her reddening neck.

Taro was finally beginning to pull himself together, focusing on his breathing and finally processing what was happening. If what Happosai had said was true, Ranma had just come back from _Hell._ And the girl, that would mean she came from where Happosai had vanished off to. So no, this couldn't be Ranma split from his cursed form, a thought backed by Ranma's reaction to her.

But what had Ranma been through in his apparently long time away? He was older now, years older. His clothing, while still a red shirt and black pants, were different. The shirt was a material that sheened differently than any he had seen before, most certainly not silk, and it was closed along the right side by neither buttons nor a zipper. Just sealed shut. And the pants, the material was thick and durable, but neither cloth nor leather. Taro couldn't name that either. Scars could be seen on Ranma's body, especially thick circular ones in the meat of his right arm. His pigtail was longer now too, down to the middle of his back, yet that seemed irrelevant in face of everything else.

Not for the first time, Taro cursed at the fact he couldn't speak in this form. He had some questions for femboy. A shiver of anxiety ran through him. That foolish old freak. Just what had he done? Ranma's life was usually chaotic, full of misadventures and fights and plots. For the first time though, things have gone too far. Taro was afraid of his rival, afraid of what this latest mishap would mean for him and everyone else. Friendly spars and beating the pulp out of each other no longer seemed like something this Ranma was willing to do.

Killing and crushing everything that stood in his way did.

Taro shivered again. Ranma had moved too fast, his motions betraying an even greater strength, yet it was his eyes. His eyes told Taro the same thing the girl's had. The capacity and will for murder. Eyes that had seen the dead. The apathetic eyes of a soldier.

As much as it loathed him to say it, grated his pride and ego, Taro was afraid. He had got what he came for - his name finally and official changed. Now, it was time to head back to China and leave this new Ranma behind, his curiosity be damned.

The freak had fucked up big time with this. He sent Ranma to _Hell?_ Over what, another stupid, harebrained ploy that failed? Taro shook his bull-like head and stepped back.

Ranma's head whipped towards the motion, tension not leaving the weapon against the girl's throat. He stared at the monstrosity of a cursed form without familiarity for a few seconds, then his eyes lit up with recognition. Then sadness. "Taro," Ranma acknowledged weakly, the soft sound nearly a croak.

Ranma stared at Taro for a moment longer, then looked back down at the girl. Her breathing still wasn't back to normal, but she was glaring at Ranma venomously now. Ranma was unfazed. "I'll ask again. Who are you?"

After a perplexed moment, the girl's glare slipping into a confused narrowing of her eyes and back, the girl opened her mouth. The words were foreign, not any language Taro knew or could recognize. But after the first sentence, her words suddenly changed. The accent shifted, an emphasis along different syllables, and the air seemed to buzz with an energy.

The new language came in a quick phrase, though, and Taro felt that something was... different. This time, when the girl opened her mouth again, it came out in perfect Japanese, "Who are you, and why did you protect that demon?"

A quick retort seemed to come to Ranma's lips at that, but he bit it back at the last second, eyes narrowing. "I don't think you're in the right position to be asking questions right now." His eyes flicked back to Taro, saw that he had taken another step back, then returned to the girl. "And Taro isn't a demon. He's just a cursed human."

Something about his curse seemed to strike a chord in the girl, and her eyes widened in surprise and... empathy. After a moment, she nodded, though the heat in her gaze hardly retreated. "I understand."

"Now, I'll give you one more chance to answer me. Who are you, and where did you learn magic?" Ranma asked, his voice hard.

Taro had had enough. This older, harsher Ranma, strange and dangerous girls, magic – he had had enough. Femboy would manage on his own. Taro was done here. He needed to get away, needed time to process what had just happened. He'd let things cool down while he returned to China, and once they did he might come back to see the result of this new Ranma.

Taro turned and fled, tiny crane wings managing to lift him and carry him off into the night sky. He flew and flew, away from there. His thoughts kept racing, coming up with things like bolts of magic suddenly striking him down, and he wasn't able to relax until he saw the coast line.

He had got what he came for. That was all that mattered.

XxX

_I couldn't blame Taro for leaving like that. Hell, it was probably for the better. I needed time myself._

_Do you know what it's like to be on the losing side of a war, feeling the hopelessness of your position as your closest friends die one by one despite your greatest efforts, and once the last one goes, begging and pleading and crying before your very eyes, to get so overwhelmed by demonic entities that your last and only resort is to lay waste into the very planet you loved in order to take every one of them down with you, and after all that, get blasted through Time and Space, violating more laws than I thought possible (and you have to trust me here, I know a _lot_ about those), finally ending up in a time period from so long ago all you remember is bits and pieces of names and faces?_

_Yeah, so you can't really blame me for my nerves being a little shot at that moment. As for thinking that girl was Beryl, I'll plead post-traumatic stress._

XxX

Ranma let Taro go, keeping his eyes on the girl under him. He expected an answer.

The girl's glare remained as she blew a strand of red hair from her eyes, obviously not pleased by the knee still digging into her stomach. But she answered him, her lips not matching the words leaving her mouth, "Bec, from the rath of the MacConn. I learned magic from... from the village priestess, of course."

It wasn't an outright lie, but Ranma could tell she was hiding something with that answer. And it left him blinking. Her clothes, her words... He got the feeling that there was more to this girl than the _where_ she came from. Perhaps, it was a _when_ she came from, like himself.

"How did you get here?" he pressed, still not relaxing his hold over her. She had been casting a spell- hell, her ability to speak Japanese was a translation spell. This girl obviously was no Senshi, and she could use magic proficiently.

Ranma's experience with proficient, non-Senshi magic users ranged from enemies to more enemies. Not exactly the best winning streak or good motivation to start trusting new ones.

"I came through the portal that the small magician made," Bec ground out. Her arms were tensed at her sides, ready for action yet knowing physical struggle was useless from her last efforts. "Who are _you?"_

Ranma ignored her. Small magician? He had only heard rumors and hearsay about magicians, never actually met any. Humans born as not humans but as beings of magic, like the Demonata. They supposedly were the best magic users around, instinctively, and only one had ever been recorded to be alive at any time. However, those were the rumors. He didn't know if their power could be measured as similar to the Senshi's, to the Queen's, or something greater.

Of course, none of that helped his knowledge of how Bec got here. Unless... time-travel was within a magician's abilities. Well then, if that were so, then their power was greater than he had originally given them credit for.

_Wait, no... Regardless of if they have the power to, Setsuna would give them hell for ever trying. So how could this girl possibly have slipped past-_ Ranma's train of thought reached a sudden conclusion, and he groaned. _Unless she was blinded by a Chaos Generator's presence. Crap, Setsuna's gonna kill me when she finds out._

Thoughts of his impending death aside, Ranma reevaluated his opinion of Bec's predicament. So, she indeed was from the past. Something about that was nagging in his mind, something from Before (which was technically the present, now that he thought about it). The only people capable of doing this time-travel business were these magicians, or... It clicked in Ranma's mind, the thing he was forgetting.

Happosai. That foolish, tiny, pervert of a man. Time-travel. Small magician. It made sense now. Happosai had used that scroll to send Ranma 3,000 years into the past, transcending the laws of Time – trapping Ranma there because the Time Keeper had been blinded to his interference and violation. But Happosai had had two scrolls, with the names switched as he had eventually reasoned out in his time in the Moon Kingdom. He must have used the other scroll on himself, perhaps of a different type of time-travel, and Bec had used that to hitch a ride through Time to the now.

Ooh, Setsuna wasn't just going to kill him. She was going to _slaughter_ him with that key of hers, and stick his head on a pike.

Ranma focused back on Bec, who's mood had darkened from his silence and her continued entrapment. "What happened to this 'small magician?'"

The nonchalance of her answer only made it more impacting. "I sacrificed him over the lodestone to close the tunnel between the Demonata universe and my land."

Ranma made his first mistake then. The shock of the news affected him to where his hold slackened slightly, dulled his tense and ready reactions. Bec felt it and recognized the opportunity. She barked out a quick spell. Ranma tensed to counter, called his own magic forward defend, but it was too late.

A woman's voice shouted in his head, worried and very feminine, _"Ranma!"_

And then he felt someone seize control of his magic, wretch it away from him, and he immediately lost control over his body. _Sneaky bitch!_ Ranma growled, already searching for a way to regain control.

"Release me," Bec ordered calmly, and Ranma grit his teeth as his body obeyed.

The girl rose to her feet, rubbing her aching stomach bitterly now that she didn't have the limb shoved in there anymore. But her anger was gone, now that she had gained the upper hand. Ranma was forced to stand before her, body relaxed and disobeying his commands to move.

Bec tapped her chin in thought as she studied him. "Now, what to do with you..."

XxX

_Have I ever mentioned how much I don't like proficient, non-Senshi magic users? Cause situations usually end up how it did between Bec and I. Except with more blood, and killing. And fire. It always includes lots and lots of fire. Heh._

XxX

In his mind, Ranma saw an image of himself standing still, waiting. It didn't make sense to him. It wasn't his own mind creating the image, but his body followed it. This girl, Bec, not only could she use magic but apparently spoken magic, in addition to mind magic. Ranma lacked the finesse of such a skill, which was rare in and of itself. The magic he used was of intent, and almost always physical. Fireballs, orbs of ice, lightning, manipulation of rock, wind, et cetera. Typically things he could keep throwing at an opponent until they stopped trying to get back up.

This spell of hers, without being able to control magic he couldn't counter it directly. The magic contained within his scythe was blocked from his reaches, and same with what was in the air around him. However helpless that made him, he'd be damned if he let some pubescent little girl be the end of him after all the hell he went through to get this far.

Especially with the things he still had left to do.

Idly, he tried changing the image of him standing still with his own mind but wasn't surprised at failure. Bec seemed to be thinking still, so he had time. Foolish girl, her hesitation would be the end of her. First lesson he ever taught the Senshi. Next, he sent out soft probings for magic. Every time he almost got a hold of it in the air, it slipped out of his control and into hers. His reaches for his scythe's magic brushed that invisible wall.

Walls were good. Batter them long enough, and they fell. Despite her skill, Bec didn't look particularly strong. His next reach was a strong grab for his scythe's magic. As he expected, the wall bent inwards, nearly collapsing, before Bec noticed and quickly fortified it, narrowing her eyes at him. Let the exciting battle of silence and staring begin!

Ranma hit the wall again and again, relentlessly, forcing Bec to hold her attention on maintaining it. Meaning she no longer had the attention to cast additional spells against him, and, Ranma noticed, the image in his mind was beginning to weaken. He could move his fingers, and control over the rest of his body was slowly returning the more Bec focused on preventing him from reaching that magic.

"_Ranma, I don't know what she did to you or why you are just standing there, but I can guess, and I feel you reaching for my magic,"_ that woman from before said into his mind again, her voice lovely and concerned. _"Here."_

Suddenly, the magic that had been walled from his touch moved on its own, apparently unaffected by the wall, and it flooded his body in a small amount. He couldn't hold much when he wasn't in his Senshi form. The human body wasn't meant to be a magical battery. But, that magic was his to use now.

Ranma wasted no time in breaking the spell that held him, staggering Bec back a step. "No more games," he growled and then used the scythe to transform into his Senshi form.

The odd red and black clothes melted away, replaced by something else entirely. A white body suit countered the female's usual _fuku_, hugging along his form. At the same time, the additions formed. Black armor plates, the metal similar to that of his scythe's blade, appeared in separate segments. There were plates for his chest, shoulders, wrists, thighs, shins, and finally a cup for his groin. Ridiculous as it might look, Ranma knew the cup saved lives. Just ask his former master, the last Senshi of Nemesis.

Unlike the flashing, spinning, exposing peepshow of the normal transformation, this variation happened nearly instantly. It was the _first_ thing Ranma learned to do once becoming a Senshi. No way in hell he'd ever get caught doing that stupid transformation a second time.

Once transformed, Ranma got his magic from its true source. Nemesis, his planet. Dear, sweet Nemesis, he had butchered her. His reach went well into the sky, to the exact location he instinctively knew her ruins to be. The planet, formerly holding billions of lives, lush forests and wildlife, oceans and air, a sense of _life_... She was now just a dead tumbling of scattered rocks, spread in a ring throughout her former orbit. But, even those rocks held some magic, and there was enough to rip it away in big handfuls and flood himself with it.

"H-How?" Bec sputtered, stepping back again. "No male should have access to female magic."

Ranma filed that note away for later use. That controlling spell had to do with male and female magic, and was apparently only effective on males. That didn't matter now. For one, Nemesis's magic was female, and two, he was prepared. That spell had caught him off-guard, without proper defenses and buffers. Mind magic, binding magic, slows and weakeners, none of those could effect him without a fight against his own magic anymore.

"Alright Bec," Ranma started, cracking his neck before leveling a steely gaze at her. "I have people to find, and that means I don't have time to waste dealing with you. I understand your situation, so I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. Stand down, and we'll talk."

Bec stared at him long and hard. Ranma could feel the magic crackling in the air around her, and he knew an all out fight against her would be brutal. Worse, from the bits he had picked up from her told him that she wasn't an enemy, just another victim of misunderstanding. If they fought, he'd kill her, plain and simple, but he really didn't want that to be the case.

Finally, Bec seemed to reach a decision inside herself, and she deflated visibly, magic dissipating. Ranma breathed out in relief, and his stance shifted to be less intimidating. His left hand twitched as if to sheath his scythe in that slip-holster along his back, but as an afterthought revised the idea. He flexed and unflexed his right hand, then looked at it with slight perplexity before sighing.

He really wasn't used to having his right hand back yet.

Bec noticed Ranma hadn't outright killed her in her defenselessness, and the thought seemed to embolden her somewhat. She met his eyes, and her hand went to her stomach again – for a different reason. "If we are going to talk, can we at least get some food? I haven't eaten in days."

XxX

_And we talked, plain and simple. She was another one of the hero types. Jaded past, selflessly offering her own life to save the world, made a bunch of enemies in the attempt, and in the end narrowly slipped away after succeeding. Perhaps we aren't such a rare breed after all._

_Then she asked me about _my_ past..._

XxX

Ranma reflected the question in silence, crouched across the fire from Bec. His scythe was across his lap, and one hand idly traced one of the silver strands that ran along the wood. No longer transformed, he was again wearing the odd red and black garb from before. The firelight gave his features a haunted look, especially the flickering shadows around his glazed eyes.

To be honest, Ranma didn't know where to begin. _In the beginning, there were twelve planets..._ That seemed reasonable. To him, at least. But one thing he had pulled from Bec's story was that she was from some time after the fall of the Moon Kingdom and before the present, and while his historical knowledge of that time was minimal at best, he knew that she likely wouldn't understand a thing.

Also, she was trapped in this time for now, until Setsuna could fix that – _if_ she could fix it at all. He knew from experience how hard the transition would be from her culture to modern Japan's. Explaining everything would take time he didn't have, yet he couldn't just leave her to find out for herself. She needed a way to help adjust...

Of course, he would need to deal with all that after answering her question. Explaining his own past... Odd, that question had always been about his original time, the Before. Now, it was both the Before and his time in the Moon Kingdom.

They had already established that Bec had traveled through time, at least. "I was born in this time. When I was five years old, my father took me from my home to train me to be a fighter. A martial artist, which is more of a defender than a warrior. He trained me for years, until I was sixteen years old. Then he took me to the city just outside this forest, a place called Nerima..." He trailed off.

Nerima, just outside this forest. Ranma accepted that fact with an unusual sense of trepidation. His family, his friends... Their faces had all but faded in his memories, only little details sticking out with their names. The craziness of his life there, what he could remember, seemed so peaceful and innocent compared the the craziness of what he dealt with after.

Burying the uncertainty that came with the memories, Ranma forced himself to continue, "I stayed there for two years. Then Happosai happened. The man you sacrificed over the lodestone, he had brought me to this forest with two scrolls. I... forgot what he had wanted with me, but he ended up getting angry and using the spell contained within one on me. Unlike the one he had used to make that portal to you, mine had no way back..."

Now the odd part, his new life. "I... was born again, because of that scroll. A newly born baby, on a whole different world known as Nemesis." Ranma smiled fondly. Nemesis, the warrior planet. _Nemesis..._ His hand gripped the wood of his scythe, allowing it to relax him. It had something like an aura that did that, an almost euphoric feeling. "I was raised by a new family, the Uzuki's. They trained me to be more than a defender, taught me battle plans and weapons. My fourth year there, I became apprentice to the Senshi of Nemesis..." Bec gave no recognition to that title. Ranma reminded himself that here, not everyone grew up respecting and learning about the Senshi. He needed to explain them in a way she would understand. "Warrior-druids and warrior-priestesses, the strongest people alive. There can only be one on a world at a time, and their purpose is to provide peace and stability to their worlds. They are the guardians of the planets."

Bec blinked and frowned. "If these Senshi exist, why didn't this world's stop the Demonata from invading?"

There was a snort in Ranma's head, and the woman's voice revisited him, _"Terra always was finicky about choosing a Senshi for herself. Her stubbornness has probably resulted in endless wars and strife the last 3,000 years. Rama, when you finish with this girl, we need to talk."_

Ranma shrugged. "Earth doesn't have one." He continued thumbing his scythe. "Now, I don't want to go into too much detail, but in short, the Senshi training me died, so I inherited his position. And recently... a war came, demons and armies led under this bitch called Metaria. All the planets and their Senshi were wiped out by Metaria, until a powerful friend of mine managed to seal Metaria and her armies away..."

The reminder sent a terrible pang through Ranma, and he felt himself almost crying again. Crystal, Hotaru, Yuka... They had all died, them and everyone he knew and cared about. Setsuna though, Ranma fiercely reminded himself, she had been kept safe at the Time Gates. She lived through it. And Crystal and Hotaru, they were reborn somewhere, and he needed to go find them before...

He left things out. So many things he couldn't bring himself to say, not to this slip of a girl. "The banishment spell used on Metaria is only temporary, so that same friend gave her life to send me and the other Senshi into the future where we may stand a better chance fighting her. It is in the process of failing even as we speak, so I must go and find the other Senshi as soon as I can so that we can work together and bring her down for good."

After finishing, Ranma watched Bec mule his story over. It would be hard to take in. Other planets, Senshi, the Moon Kingdom, the war... It had been hard for _him_ to take in even experiencing all of it, and he had the advantage of at least this moderately technological Japan and his occurrences with magic and curses to help him believe the possibilities of technology and magic at the scale of what he had seen and done.

Finally, Bec looked over at him, blue eyes unreadable. "If this story is true, then your own... other world, the one that you are Senshi to, it is dead?"

There was a flash of pain, but the question was not unreasonable. Ranma focused down on his scythe, a reassurance that not all was lost. "It is dead." _But not all was lost, Nemesis. Yell and scream all you want, I couldn't allow it all to be lost._

"_Ranma..."_ muttered that woman's voice, again trapped within only his head. Even her usual personalty was abnormal currently, an after-effect of the war and loss. Then again, she had lost more than most. _"It's not your fault."_

Bec nodded, and she broke away her gaze from his. "I'm sorry, then. I know how it must feel." A retort came to Ranma's lips, but he bit it back at the last second. Honestly, she probably did, better than most. Bec sighed, then barked a humorless laugh. "I'm so tired of fighting, of the world being in danger and being the only thing left to save it. I want nothing more than to just settle down somewhere, find myself a husband and free myself of responsibility... But even after all that happened, I can't seem to just stand aside. If this Metaria is breaking free, I will help you and those Senshi in bringing her down."

Ranma shook his head immediately, before his mind could fall into the calculations of how he could best use her. Dammit, but he really could. "This isn't your fight, Bec. It isn't even your time. I'll do what I can to get you settled here, but that's it." He didn't need another innocent's blood on his hands. He had enough already.

Bec leaned back into a sprawl as her eyes flashed back at Ranma's, yet she seemed a tad relieved. "My offer will still stand. If you find yourself in need of more magic, I will help."

Ranma left it at that, and silence settled between them, interrupted only by the soft crackling and pops of the fire. His thoughts threatened to slip towards brooding, about the war, what was lost, and what was to come, but he didn't feel inclined to stop them.

Bec interrupted his dark thoughts by asking, "So what are you going to do now?"

It was a good question. He knew what he had to do – find the Senshi, whip them back into shape, and strike at Metaria before she regained her full power – but he didn't have a method yet as to going about that. Then there were the obstacles still in his way. Bec, for one, would need someone to look after her, a job Ranma didn't think he could afford doing himself, and there were still those in Nerima to consider. If he were to just vanish without a word, they would come looking for him. That much he remembered.

And... and to be honest, he wanted to see them again. Nearly twenty-five years ago he had resigned himself to never seeing his family and friends again, mourned and moved on. Now, he was back... And it was his new friends and family he would never see again.

Ranma stemmed the sudden throb of emotions, shook his head, and answered Bec, _"We_ are going to Nerima, where I can get you a place to stay. Then I'm leaving to find the Senshi."

Bec nodded and stood. "Shall we go then? The night is yet young."

Ranma glanced up at the darkened sky and nodded slowly. Earth's sky. He really was back, back to the very moment he had first left, back as if it had all been just a dream.

It hadn't been a dream, though. Ranma planted his scythe into the ground and stood, glancing again at his right hand. He had the scars to prove it, the memories of everyone he knew and had lost. The war continued.

He put out the fire and took a deep breath of the forest air. Time to keep moving.

XxX

Kasumi busied herself by reading another medical book as she waited for Ranma to return. She, like the rest of the household, had heard of Happosai's intention of testing Ranma to see if he was ready to become a master, and while none of them were sure when the two would return, she felt it would be nice to wait a while in case he came back late this night.

So engrossed with her reading, she almost didn't notice the quiet ruckus just outside their gate. "That must be Ranma," she said to herself, carefully marking her place in her book and standing. She brushed off her dressed and went outside, smiling wide in congratulations for her sister's fiance.

One of the voices outside the gate was most definitely Ranma, and Kasumi opened it for him. "Ranma, welcome back." And then she paused, blinking in surprise.

Instead of meeting his eyes, as she usually did, Kasumi found herself staring at a rather broad chest. Her gaze went up a ways to find a man's face, not the younger boyish one. This person wasn't her little sister's finance, that boy who had stumbled into their lives not so long ago. This was a man bearing Ranma's features, old enough to be her own fiance if that was the case.

Next to him was another odd sight. It was a redhead, much like Ranma's cursed form, except before Kasumi could think that she only mistook the man for being Ranma, this girl was even more different. Younger and less endowed than 'Ranko,' and she also had darker colored hair styled different, her face oval and undeniably of Irish descent, rather than Ranma's own Asian.

"Oh my, please excuse me. I was expecting someone else. Welcome to the Tendo Dojo. How may I help you?" Kasumi asked politely. It wasn't yet too late for visitors, after all, and they had the most unusual house guests at times.

The older man, who was quite attractive Kasumi acknowledged with a blush that couldn't be seen in the dark, smiled weakly at her, and his left hand moved behind his head in a manner very similar to how Ranma would. "Hey, Kasumi. Heh, I guess you wouldn't recognize me. I am Ranma."

Kasumi blinked again. Oh. Oh my. Then, her smile widened in genuine amusement. Strange things always seemed to follow the poor boy. Well, currently man. Her blush suddenly deepened when she remembered her earlier thoughts. "You simply must tell us what happened during your test with grandfather Happosai. Who's your friend?"

She missed the sudden flash of pain in Ranma's eyes. "This is Bec MacConn. May we come in? I got some news for everyone..."

"Certainly, come right in," Kasumi said pleasantly, motioning them inside. "Pleased to meet you, Bec-san. My name is Kasumi Tendo."

As they passed her, Kasumi noticed some odd things about the couple. Bec seemed rather well-traveled and right off the road, with leaves and twigs visible on her torn and dusty clothes, a few in her hair. The girl obviously needed a bath and new clothes, which seemed rather odd now that she took a better look at them. The second odd thing was Ranma, as he passed her she saw a large scythe on his back. Perhaps another enchanted artifact from his adventures? With him one never knew.

"This home is amazing," Bec complimented in surprisingly good Japanese, wide eyed as she looked up and around the house.

Ranma huffed a laugh, while Kasumi thanked her and gave a brief history of their family home. Once they were inside, Kasumi turned to them and asked, "Would either of you like a bath while I call everyone together?"

Bec nearly moaned at the thought. "Stars above, yes please."

"Ranma, would you please show her where the _furo _is while I gather everyone into the dining room?" Kasumi asked, and when he nodded she set out to her task.

Just before she left though, she saw Ranma lean towards Bec and say, "There's something you may need to learn about _furo's_ before you..." And then she was out of earshot.

By everyone, Kasumi figured Ranma also meant his mother, so within fifteen minutes she had everyone together and at the table. At around the same time, Bec finished her bathing and came down wearing a few of Akane's things that Kasumi had politely suggested her sister shared with their guest. The girl seemed fascinated by her borrowed clothes.

Ranma's new appearance raised the usual confusion and interest, but he remained tight-lipped about the circumstances until Bec joined them.

"Alright boy, she's here. Tell us what happened with the dreaded master's test," Genma demanded, arms crossed. "You passed, didn't you?"

Ranma took a deep breath, and as he exhaled he smiled suddenly. "You don't know how glad I am to see all of you again."

Everyone stared at him strangely, an odd silence filling the room. His eyes seemed watery as he beamed at them, blue eyes slowly taking in each person sitting at the table staring at him. When he finished his inspection, he closed his eyes and sighed, then muttered something that sounded like, "I remember now..."

It was obvious something was off with Ranma, but before anyone could press he opened his eyes and continued, "To start off with, this is Bec, and no, she is not a new fiancee." There was a collective sigh of relief following that. "Second, Happosai is dead."

Silence. Ranma seemed to have expected some other sort of reaction, and he blinked at the lack of any verbal response. The sudden news made them speechless, eyes wide in shock. After a moment, he continued, "He did something very stupid. The best I can explain it is that he opened a portal to a different time and jumped through, where he was accidentally killed. Bec here stumbled through that portal before it closed.

"Now, from what I gathered Bec is from another country back before or during the middle ages. She has no clue what things are like in this world and needs help adjusting. Since I was there, I offered to give her that help. However, I do not want to get her involved in the stupid fiancee situation for obvious reasons."

The shock coming from Happosai's death lingered for a moment longer. Finally, Nodoka said in a soft tone, "I'll take her in. We have plenty of room at the Saotome family home." Ranma smiled his thanks at her.

Bec gave Nodoka an awkward bow and said, "Thank you very much."

Nabiki, however, raised an eyebrow at this. "I thought you said she was from another country and time. How does she speak Japanese?"

Ranma sighed. "That's the next part. Bec can use magic. She had cast a translation spell when we first met." There were nods of acknowledgment at that, the mood still heavy. Ranma wasn't yet finished. "And the last part is that Happosai, before he went through that portal... He did something to me as well."

He gestured to himself, all six feet of towering man with unusual clothes and a bladed weapon on his back. "He had sent me through a different portal, one I couldn't go back through. I've been stuck in the past for over twenty years, and I just got back."

There were gasps and an 'oh my' from the group. Other than that, they took the news remarkably well. Two years of curses and monsters and the general chaos that had followed Ranma gave them a lot of experience in dealing with things like this. However, this seemed the most extreme yet, and not exactly reversible.

Genma was the first to speak. "Well, now that you're back you can go marry Akane. Surely your absence allowed you to realize your true feelings for her." Tendo was quick to agree, smiling hopefully.

Ranma narrowed his eyes. Akane blushed and, instead of utterly rejecting the notion, looked to see Ranma's response. Things had been different between them after the failed wedding. However, his hand went up to curl around the scythe on his back, a very threatening motion, yet for some reason it seemed to relax him.

In a slow tone, Ranma said, "Don't pretend to know what happened while I was gone. For all you know, father, I could have had a wife in my other life. Maybe even several."

Everyone blinked at that, at both his words and the implications. Before the moment could linger, Ranma suddenly released his scythe and ran that hand through his hair. "Look, I'm sorry Akane, but you and I aren't meant to be. We might have had something in my first life, which may have only been earlier today for you, but that was twenty-five years ago to me. I'm forty-three years old now. I had to move on while I was gone."

Ranma maintained eye contact with Akane. "My name is Ranma Uzuki-Saotome. I am no longer your fiance or any of the other girls' fiance. I'm sorry if you ever thought something could exist between us, and maybe something could have, but not anymore. I'm old enough to be your father..."

His eyes sudden wrenched away from Akane to face the rest of the assembled group, and his words maintained momentum. "Sorry the schools aren't gonna be united now, but that's the way is has to be. I only came here for the night to see you all again and close old wounds, and in the morning I need to leave. Things from my past life carried over. I have stuff left to do."

Ranma fell silent. It wasn't the most graceful of speeches, but he got his point across. And as it seemed he expected, the people broke out of their stupor and exploded into violent reactions.

Bec was more than uncomfortable as she watched them shout and bellow, some demands and others in outrage. One was crying and others pleading for everyone to calm down. Ranma gave her a reassuring and wry grin.

Ranma then faced the crowd and shouted over their rejections, "THIS IS FINAL!" They all fell silent. "Look, you are my family and my friends. You know the chaos that follows me. Something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. I'm sorry I have to leave you all, especially like this, but I'm well over the age where I can make my own decisions."

Akane abruptly stood up, drawing everyone's attention. Tears fell from her eyes. Ranma looked saddened by that, but he said nothing. She broke into a run for the stairs. No one stopped her.

"Boy!" Genma hissed sharply, and Ranma turned his attention to him. "Apologize to her. Now." His eyes bore hard into Ranma's, holding the moment to where it looked like Ranma was actually considering it. Then, Genma closed his eyes, folded his arms, and nodded. "And then you will marry her and unite the schools."

Ranma huffed a laugh, though it sounded more like a sigh. "Father, how would you feel if Mom suddenly died and your pops demanded you go and marry some eighteen year old girl?"

Genma glared, but he faltered at that. Ranma turned to Soun. "Bad things are coming. She will only be in danger if she goes with me."

The Tendo master still had tears from his original outcry, and he looked close to bawling again, though he manged to hold himself together. "If it's age that's your problem, we have Kasumi..."

Ranma turned towards the woman in question. She blinked her large brown eyes and blushed at the offer, curiously not finding herself opposed to it. She muttered, "Oh my."

Ranma smiled at her reaction, but he shook his head. "I can't take her, I'm sorry. Thank you for everything you've done for me, but this is the end. Ranma died today with Happosai. In all ways that matter, I am not him."

The waterworks started. Kasumi moved to comfort her father, sending Ranma an apprehensive and almost wistful glance.

As Soun cried his sorrow, Ranma turned to Genma. The man was obviously trying desperately to find some way to prevent the arranged marriage from falling apart, but Ranma wouldn't let him. "Pops, just let it go."

"Boy, I put everything into this. My only dream is to unite the schools. You aren't about to take that away now," Genma snapped, glaring at Ranma.

Ranma's eyes narrowed. "Happosai took that away as the last act of his life. Go celebrate that he died or something. I'm not going to put up with this any longer."

Nodoka had remained strangely quiet during this, and she was regarding Ranma carefully. After his words to Genma, she seemed to reach a conclusion inside herself and nodded. "I don't care what happened, you are still my son."

Ranma looked over to her and showed a real smile. "That's enough for me, Mom. Thank you for taking care of Bec." As she nodded back to him, he faced the remaining crowd. "You know, this isn't the end of everything. I'm still going to visit and be Ranma and stuff, but things are going to be different. It's like I'm moving out. Every family has to deal with it sometime."

Kasumi smiled at him. "Good luck, Ranma."

He thanked her, and with that the resistance to his leave seemed to fade away. Once it was obvious no one else was going to speak out, Ranma turned to Bec. "I guess this is goodbye then."

The red haired girl turned to him nervously, uncomfortable with the argument she just bore witness to. "Thank you, Ranma, for the help you have given me so far." She performed another awkward bow for him.

Ranma chuckled at her attempt and returned a proper one. The two shared a smile before Nodoka rose and gestured for Bec to follow. "Well, we best be going now. Goodbye, Ranma. Please visit me once you find a place of your own."

Ranma looked troubled for a moment before turning sheepish. "You live in... Juuban, right?" Nodoka nodded with a small smile. "Alright, I'll see you in a couple of days then. Bye, Mom. Thanks!" The two redheads left out the front door.

Once they were gone, however, both father's rallied together against Ranma. They just weren't able to let go so suddenly. Ranma took one look at the commotion starting before excusing himself for fresh air, leaving the distraught and angered men to be soothed by Kasumi.

XxX

_When I was in the Moon Kingdom, I always thought that if I could ever see my family again, there would be tears, rejoicing, and celebration. I never stopped missing them, even if they weren't always on my mind. Then again, there was never a war looming in the background of that little fantasy._

XxX

Ranma found himself on the Tendo grounds looking for a good place to relax and sort through his thoughts. He tried remembering where he used to back when he had lived here, but it was just too long ago. Shaking his head, he settled for sitting on one of the rocks surrounding the koi pond.

The still water appeared black in the night sky, with the occasional pale flash as a fish came closer to the surface. Ranma watched with a passive eye, pulling his scythe from its holster and laying it across his lap. Immediately that peaceful presence filled his being, the unnatural aura surrounding his scythe, and he drew as much of it in as possible.

After a few moments of this, Ranma huffed a light laugh. "I still can barely believe I'm back. I feel like I'm dreaming. Or still dead."

"_I'll admit, this is the most voyeuristic view into your life I've ever had,"_ the woman from before commented into his head. Her voice turned lower and Ranma could hear the smirk in it, _"Apart from the times I watched you shower, of course."_

Ranma chuckled, beginning to run a finger down the silver strands of the scythe again. "I just knew you had been watching me. It wouldn't be like you to let the opportunity pass."

The woman hummed in agreement. _"But in all seriousness, I've watched over you since your birth, the child who was not mine but instead Terra's. When Ryu brought my attention to you himself, I watched as I would any future Senshi. Once you became the Senshi, I was bound even deeper to you. I've tracked the most of your life, Ranma. However, the eighteen years of before have always been hidden to me, known only by what you told your family and myself. Being here has a bit of a forbidden pleasure to it."_

Ranma watched as a fish's tail splashed out of the water momentarily, leaving a small ripple over the black surface of the pond. "So what did you want to talk with me about?"

"_While I'll admit it is of great importance, now is not the best time for that discussion. Let's instead discuss that magnificently awkward reunion."_ Her tone was more playful than cruel, yet Ranma still winced.

"Realistically, it went better than could be normally expected," he mentioned. "There weren't any fights, and none of my rivals or other fiancees decided to show up... I do need to talk to Akane, though."

"_I noticed. What about your first father?"_

Ranma blew out a sigh. "He'll probably try some crazy ideas to get us back together, either through anti-aging mushrooms or sealing my memories of the Moon Kingdom. The latter actually has a good chance of working, but I won't let that happen. Too much is relying on me returning to the Senshi."

The woman was silent for a moment. She then asked, _"Were you being honest about the age thing?"_

Ranma took a moment to think about it. "Not really. Age means nothing. However, Akane isn't mature at all, and _that_ does mean something to me."

"_And what does it take to reach the maturity you're looking for?"_ the woman asked a tad bitterly. _"War? Torture? The things that you went through?"_

Ranma blinked at the tone, glancing down at the scythe in his hands. "I don't know. Something like that, I guess. I mean Bec looks even younger than her, but she shows that she is much more mature." He tilted his head back to get a view of the stars above that manged to press through the city sky. "Also... Akane couldn't deal with what's to come. She is used to angry rivals kidnapping her and me saving her. My new enemies won't be so... kind. I had to burst that bubble back in the Moon Kingdom. It took that assassin on Saturn to make me realize it. These demons won't hesitate in killing her. She has no way of defending herself. The further she is, the further everyone is, from me the better."

"_So... what now then?"_

He sighed. "I'm going to speak with Akane and then get some sleep. Tomorrow I'm going to finish breaking ties out here, then head over to Juuban."

"_Juuban? Where is that and what's there? Besides your mother's residence, of course."_ the woman asked, curious.

"It's a few districts over. As for what's there... Ever since, well, I heard I was coming back here, I've been trying to remember as much of this time as possible. The final conflict that eventually led me to the Moon Kingdom is something that I went through over and over once I found myself trapped there, looking for a way back I might have missed. Because I had focused on it so long, it's something that I remember the best. The fight had taken place in Juuban, and even though I didn't realize it then... There were spectators to the fight that I think might have been the Senshi. It's vague and faded, but odds are it might be real. Either way, it seems a good place to start."

XxX

Ranma tapped on a window. He hung gracefully from the roof with his left hand. His scythe had been returned to it's sheath, no longer feeding him its serene aura. It took a while before the window slid open and Akane appeared.

Ranma flipped himself into the room, less than a foot away from his former fiancee. He recognized the red rimmed eyes and knew she had been crying. He steeled himself.

"Ranma?" Akane asked before wiping her eyes.

"Yeah, I felt like we needed to talk alone," he replied softly.

Akane tried to flare at him. "We don't need to talk! Why don't you go on over to one of your _other..._ Oh, who am I kidding?" The short haired girl abruptly hugged Ranma tightly and began crying again. Ranma awkwardly wrapped his arms back around her, attempting to sooth her. "Why did you have to drop all the other fiancees too? Why did you send Bec away? Why can't I have a reason to be angry at anyone?"

Ranma didn't know how to answer that, so he stayed quiet, letting Akane pour her sorrow out. He rubbed her back gently. Once she managed to calm down, he whispered, "I'm sorry, but it has to be this way. I'm not the Ranma you know."

"It's not fair," Akane replied, her voice strained. "We were just beginning to... to..."

Ranma nodded. "I know. I'm sorry, but things are different now."

After another moment of silence, the two released each other. They both sat on the bed, side-by-side. Akane wiped away the new tears and asked, "Did you really have wives back from where you came?"

Ranma laughed and shook his head. "You know me better than that."

Akane giggled and smiled for the first time. "Yeah, I guess I do. I bet you had a bunch of suitors and rivals though."

Ranma pinched the bridge of his nose. "Ugh, don't get me started. You know how you guys always fought? These girls all wanted to _share."_ Akane looked at him in shock. Then, she started laughing again. Ranma joined in after a moment. When they settled down, his expression darkened. "But there weren't any rivals. Only enemies. Enemies who killed everyone I knew and cared about. That's part of why I need to go."

Akane stared at him, for the first time seeing the deadly steel in this Ranma's eyes. She shivered. "I... I understand."

"No, you don't," Ranma sighed out. "But it'll be better for you if you don't."

"So what are you going to do now?" Akane asked, changing the subject.

"Find some old friends," he replied evenly. "Then help them kill some old enemies."

Akane flinched at that, obviously not used to Ranma talking about killing so casually. She glanced up at his unique scythe, with its gleaming black blade. "When did you get a weapon?"

Ranma actually smiled at the question, one hand going to it fondly. "My father gave it to me. His name was Uzuki, Fugao."

Akane's eyes snapped to his. "You had another father?"

Ranma nodded. "The scroll turned me into a baby... It was _not_ a pretty experience." Akane laughed again, amused at the idea of her former fiancee as a baby. Ranma then explained the lighter, more humorous tales of his second life.

The duo spent several hours in Akane's room laughing over his stories. Eventually, Ranma bid her goodnight and stood up. Akane bid him goodbye. Then, he was gone.

XxX

Hotaru's sleep was restless, plagued by a stirring of her weakly sealed memories of her time in the Moon Kingdom. The most recent additions had fractured the damaged seal further, unknowingly to her allowing some of them to seep out into her dreams.

"_Oh, stop your complaining," Hotaru admonished, grinning slightly. "This ball is held in our honor, as representatives of the Silent Chaos. Besides, you agreed to a dance."_

_The man she was leading to the dance floor was strikingly handsome, wearing a white tuxedo. His face held that roguish look, with blue eyes lit with mischief and emotion – eyes she found herself prone to simply staring into, an annoying habit. He was nearly a head taller than her, though only a year older than her twenty-three. His black hair was tied back into a pigtail, the only style she had ever seen it. He moved with power and grace, and she knew what muscles lay hidden from her sight. He appeared flawless, if it weren't for a single oddity. His right arm hung limply to his side, weak and atrophied compared to the strong left arm. She barely noticed it anymore, but it was an unavoidable part of him._

"_I'm not complaining," the man complained, a touch of amusement coloring his voice. "I'm just afraid of how many girls started moving towards me the moment I sat down, and only a little glad that you were the first to reach me."_

_Hotaru looked back at the women gathered near the tables across the room and sent them a smug glance. Death glares were returned, but she stuck her nose up against them. Silly nobles. They should know better than to try and involve themselves with Senshi._

_They found an open spot, and the man took one of her hands and began to lead in the dance. His disability didn't seem to hinder his movements. "Only a little?" Hotaru sniffed. "I'll have you know I'm an excellent dancer. Don't you remember how many lessons I attended while you just skipped off to practice your martial arts? Speaking of, where _did_ you learn how to dance?"_

"_A little here, and little there," the man answered intentionally vague, knowing it would rile her up. Hotaru refused to give him the pleasure. "I never knew you liked dancing though."_

_She followed the movements perfectly, exactly like she had been taught. Spin out, step left, step in, twirl, stop, step back – always connected by the hand. It was odd seeing _him_ do his part just as fluidly. "An unfortunate interest. It's not like I can find any partners, with the infamy that follows my title." He didn't care about her title, though; not her title nor her power. "You are only the second man I've ever danced with, besides my instructor."_

_His arm came around her suddenly, during a moment her body was turning away from him, with his hand still holding hers firmly. This wasn't part of the dance, but it wouldn't raise comment with the more intimate couples. Hotaru blushed at that. His voice came from next to her ear. "Ignore those fools. They don't know what they're missing, and they obviously don't deserve your company." The moment ended and she finished the turn, again facing him with her face heated. He smirked at her. "So, who's the lucky guy?"_

"_It doesn't bother me anymore. Not since you showed up with Ryu that one day." _My hero,_ Hotaru smiled. "I never got his name. I wanted to dance, so I went to an informal masquerade among the lesser nobles and didn't announce myself. It was quite pleasant."_

"_Saturn's Senshi shouldn't have to _hide_ herself in order to enjoy a simple dance," the man sniffed, disgusted._

_Hotaru smiled slightly, basking in his concern. It was perhaps irrational, since this man was her promised guardian, but the reassurance that he among others did not fear her was simply comforting. Even the other Senshi – afraid of both her power and the prophesy – never treated her like he did, except for Pluto. Those of Nemesis were unique in that way._

"_Hotaru-chan, what's on your mind?" he asked her, perceptive of her wandering thoughts._

_Hotaru's smile returned at the old nickname, and she relaxed herself into the dance and his comforting hold over her hand, assured by his mere presence. "What things might have been like if you hadn't been taken from me back on Saturn."_

_For the first time, he faltered in his part of the dance._

"Hotaru, time to wake up," a voice called, immediately banishing Hotaru's rather vivid dream. It was Setsuna-mama, peering through the doorway.

Hotaru forced herself to sit up and smiled sleepily. "I'm up." Setsuna smiled back and left, and when she did Hotaru plopped back into her pillow.

She fought off the soothing call of returning to sleep, and instead focused on her dream. It came to her clearly. It reminded her of her memories of the Moon Kingdom, both the setting and feel of it. She had never seen that man before in any of her memories, yet in the dream she seemed to have known him quite well.

After a moment of thinking, Hotaru yawned and stretched wide, then sat back up and dragged herself out of bed. Not much chance it was a memory of a past lover, unfortunately, but it made for a wonderful dream that she hoped she didn't forget anytime soon. She just wished she had gotten her dream-man's name.

XxX

_Ranma's dream was immediately lucid, surprising him. He hadn't had dreams like that since he was recovering his memories with the Urgoks, back before the war. He glanced around, also surprised to see scenery instead of the darkness of last time. Purple grass, dark green tree bark with autumn-red leaves, and light green skies gave it away instantly. He was back on Nemesis._

_The weary warrior smiled and sat down, enjoying the return of his home planet. He took a deep breath of the air and relished in the scent he hadn't smelled since long before the war, of open forests and the life unique to only here. The last time he was on Nemesis, the air had been stuffy with the stench of gore and rotting demons._

_Suddenly, Ranma felt a pair of slender arms snake their way around his chest. He was surprised to feel himself getting pulled back and pressed against an obvious pair of breasts. Confused, he shifted his body to turn around._

_There, before him, with a brilliant smile and ever familiar dress the color of the sky above, was someone Ranma thought he wouldn't be able to see again for a long time. Dark green hair, the same shade as the nearby trees, cascaded down her shoulders. Her black eyes sparkled with mischievousness and happiness, surrounded by a youthful face with high cheekbones and smoothed features. She was magnificently beautiful, yet held that mature look that seemed to come with age. Her modest gown didn't cling to her sensually, though it did little to hide her wonderful curves._

_The last time Ranma had seen this woman, her body had been dissolving into dust._

"_So, now you're dreaming about me?" she asked, her tone coy and her voice exactly the same as that which was coming from his scythe earlier._

"_Nemesis..." Ranma breathed, and suddenly things seemed to come together. He grew a lopsided grin. "I ain't dreaming about you. You're actually here."_

_She released him and spread her arms. "In the flesh... kind of."_

"_And how exactly?" Ranma asked, baffled and overjoyed. Nemesis was very dear to him, yet it was hard for him to define 'who' or 'what' she was. A planetary embodiment was the closest he ever came to it, but in short she was the planet of Nemesis given sentience and human form. She was a being well beyond human understanding, near omniscient of the happenings on the surface of Nemesis and vastly powerful. He was her chosen Senshi, she gave him her power, and she made him her Avatar. Nemesis was millions or perhaps billions of years old, with the deepest understanding of humans and their nature, though her constructed physical form was only 700 years old. She was the literal Mother Earth, only "Mother Nemesis," and her wisdom was unimaginable._

_She was also a super pervert, and Ranma had been her target of choice ever since he became her Senshi._

_Nemesis grabbed him again and tugged him down to the grass, snuggling up to him. "You of all people should know of the power of contact, and my influence over a Nemesisian's dreams. You fell asleep holding the scythe that is now my body, and I felt this a suiting way to finally speak with you."_

_Ranma remembered that she wanted to, and he had an odd feel of imminent danger._

"_To start with," she continued sweetly, "I'd like to thank you for saving my life. We both know I would have perished in the wake of that spell." She leaned in and kissed Ranma's cheek, her lips warm and moist and the gesture not very chaste. Ranma blushed lightly, his cheek tingling pleasantly when she pulled back with a smirk._

_Her black eyes gleamed suddenly, and an elbow backed by superhuman strength slammed into Ranma's gut, knocking the wind out of him. "And _that_ is for taking my Planetary Heart Crystal without permission, and then forcing it into your scythe, _also_ without permission. If you had been inclined to _share_ your idea, we could have manage something much less crude and the transition much less traumatic... How the hell did you even know that would work?"_

_Ranma, still clutching his side, was beginning to clear his wheezing. _Damn, that woman can hit hard._ After another moment, he managed a weak sheepish grin. "I didn't know. I remembered how you removed my own Heart Crystal, took a shot in the dark and assumed you had one too. I severed your link with the planet, saving you from dying with it, and hoped that it would fuze with the wood of the scythe, since it had been a living part of you at one point."_

_For a long time, Nemesis was quiet, staring at his eyes unblinking with such intensity Ranma began to get nervous. Finally, she asked softly, "You did all that... on a whim?"_

"_Actually, it was something I had been mulling over ever since I heard about Eris Ascension, as a just in case," Ranma explained. "I had never finished hammering out the details, but that was the furthest I had gotten by the time it happened."_

_She nodded, expression thoughtful. Concluding something to herself, she glanced back at his eyes, expression serious and concerned. "The next thing I wanted to speak with you about is..." She tapped his forehead. "How is your psych?"_

_Ranma blinked. "What do you mean?"_

"_Not a day ago, you were in the middle of a war, one where you lost your friends and your family. You killed, and you condemned innocents to die, even if you had no choice," Nemesis put bluntly. Her eyes, however, were full of wisdom and understanding, with no small trace of sympathy. "Ranma, I know what you had to do on Venus and Mercury, and I know very well what I made you do on me. No man could come out of that undamaged, not even you."_

_Ranma almost retreated into the Soul of Ice, which was his only comfort to the pain of loss and other emotional blows. However, this time he weathered the storm. He has closed his eyes and leaned flat on his back, then took to staring at the unique sky instead of her._

_His response came slow, laced with traces of emotions he mostly kept out. "I didn't come out 'undamaged,' Nemesis. I died." He paused for a moment. "I was another casualty, and I left Kresh in charge of protecting the Earth upon death. I think my death absorbed most of the shock of the war, and right now I only think about it as a reference on how I'll end it for good."_

_Nemesis listened in silence as he went on. "For those that I... that I killed, those that I condemned... It's not as easy. My own family- ...I'm sure that Fugao and Okaa-san and Oji-san and Uncle Sid and all of them were still alive when I... And Venus and Mercury, I know I had no choice, but... Dammit, it isn't as easy." All the dark thoughts and feelings he had been keeping out since his return to this time were slowly creeping back, all the horrors of the war._

"_'War is your duty;' 'there is honor in war;' 'glory to the slain and the victors;' 'war is an ending to a problem;' 'collateral damage is a necessary cost;' 'use the collateral to influence the enemy's defeat;' 'defend until there is nothing left to defend, then avenge;' 'remember your fallen allies and they will never be dead,'" Ranma quoted bitterly. Half of them were idioms of the soldiers of Nemesis, the rest were sayings from other places he had been to. "All that, and not a damn one helps."_

_He continued, "But, despite it all, the time-travel that we went through is throwing everything through a loop. I didn't have a home to come back to in the Moon Kingdom, and yet I came here – home – without a thing different... but me. The 3,000 years makes it feel almost like a different reality – a dream – one where the war never happened. I feel that every person who had died then would be dead now anyways, but Setsuna is a reminder that that isn't true either. I feel detached from it, but the war is still there. I know it happened, and it will always be there even if no one remembers."_

_He closed his eyes again. "Like I said, I try not to think about it."_

_As he spoke, Nemesis had moved to where she was kneeling next to him, hands in her lap. When he finished, she said, "There is not much to advise in matters of mental trauma, and even I don't know how to factor in the variables of your death, time-travel, multiple lives, a former memory lock, or even recovering from breaking mentally._

"_I can't expect a few words to get you over everything that happened, nor can I protect you from whatever else _will_ happen. You are strong, Ranma, both physically and mentally. Your whole life has geared you for shouldering the constant shit that is thrown your way." Ranma opened his eyes in surprise at her language. "However, no matter how prepared you are, one is never immune to loss on that magnitude. You know I will always lend an ear for any problem you may have._

"_Just remember that that war was not 'just another chapter in your weird life.' Remember it for what it was, remember who is at fault for it, and remember that it is not yet over." She reached out and gently brushed his forehead, moving bangs from his eyes. "For all that you've gone through, it isn't over yet, Ranma. There will be more loss and more pain."_

_Her touch was soft and her skin smooth, but Ranma noticed neither. He closed his eyes again. "I know what you're getting at," he muttered, "and I _am_ ready for bearing more. You don't have to worry."_

"_I am not worried, Ranma. Merely saddened at what has been done to you."_

_He sat up, eyes bright with emotion. "Don't be. As bad as it's been, I've had people like you to help me through the rough patches." He remembered something. "Speaking of, I wanted to thank you for all the help you've given me. You've helped me so much I don't even know where to start."_

_Nemesis smiled at him kindly. "Like I said before, I will help you when I can and as much as I can. You are more than just my Avatar to me." She winked. "Now, there is one more thing I wished to discuss, but I feel this conversation has gone on long enough and you don't need any additional emotions drudged up presently."_

_Ranma knew immediately what she was referencing, in fact he had been expecting it, but he felt she was right in not needing _that_ talk right now. Too much bloodshed and guilt on his mind to even consider it. "Just give me a night, we can talk tomorrow."_

_Nemesis bowed her head to him. "Of course. Is there anything else before I return you to your normal scheduled dreams?"_

_Ranma shook his head. "Thanks, Nemesis, for caring."_

"_It was my pleasure, Avatar," she winked. The world of Nemesis was fading, colors bleeding away into a kind of greyish mush. "Please forgive me for bringing up the harsh memories. We'll speak with again the morning."_

_Then, she vanished too, and Ranma's lucidity faded away with her._

XxX

_Leaving the Tendo's was a rough affair. Emotionally as well as physically. Pops especially just couldn't accept the change. Nabiki, Kasumi, Old Man Tendo... Akane. For the first time in twenty-five years I was reunited with them, and just as fast I needed to leave. It... wasn't easy. But they were still alive, there was at least that much._

_Ucchan was out of town, for whatever reason, so I left the Tendo's with the task of informing her of the broken engagements. I guess that meant she'll come after me to kill me again. For her sake I hope not. That left only my biggest headache, the Amazons._

XxX

"_Ranma, slow down,"_ Nemesis asked softly, as Ranma moved from the Tendo's towards where he thought he remembered the Amazons to be.

He complied, trying to appear casual as a guy walking down a street holding a scythe can be. He knew he was failing miserably. He might as well add talking to himself to the image. "Either an old gardening hat or a sports bag. One of those and I _might_ have a chance of blending in."

"_Or the black hooded cloak and skeleton mask,"_ she suggested, to which Ranma laughed. An elderly woman quickly turned around and went back the alley she had come from. _"Well, today has just been one whirlwind after another, from the very moment you woke up. We haven't even had a chance to speak yet."_

"Crystal held the Moon in Order, I hold Nerima in Chaos," he quipped, though his insides suddenly slithered with nervousness and his heart beat just a bit faster. It wasn't that he didn't _want_ to talk about this, he just... didn't know what to say yet.

"_Ranma..."_

He sighed, then slowly took in a deep breath to speak. "I know. I-" His danger sense shot a warning.

Ranma spun in place, knees bending automatically and hands coming up in a lightning-quick guard, scythe held in his left hand parallel to the ground. While his body was ready for it near instantly, his eyes failed to pick up the threat before it hit him in the gut. Literally.

Learning to hold onto his scythe after taking a blow had become a reflex since his first lessons with it, though with it's new inhabitant he took extra care in preventing extra harm to it over himself. He had gone maybe ten feet in the air before he got his feet under him and he dragged himself to a stop, remembering he had his right hand to use for balance.

Ranma stayed kneeled like that, eyeing that which would be his opponent. He had lived in the Lunar Palace for too long, he just wasn't used to sudden attacks after a life of royalty. In his defense, the soldier in him almost obliterated the attacker in a counterattack before he could control himself.

"Ryoga," Ranma addressed, rising finally. After all he had experienced in the Moon Kingdom, his old rival had significant power for a non-Senshi, and he could feel the mellow throb fading away in his gut.

"What the hell, Ranma?" the fanged boy cursed, now cradling his hand. "Are you made of steel now or something?"

Ranma blinked. He had forgotten about that. Nemesis had three times Earth Standard Gravity, or ESG. He had been born again there, with a Nemesisian body – a body that was naturally compressed with denser bones and muscles so it could withstand the gravity like it was normal. While most of his time had been spent outside that intense gravity, with most planets altered to have one ESG, so he was used to it, his body genetically was slow to atrophy the necessary muscles, and he had trained to keep them up. That left him at his 735 pounds, which was simply painful to someone who was expecting to hit a 170 pound Terran runt.

Ryoga finally seemed to notice Ranma's additional height, and age for that matter. He blinked once, then glared. "What did you do to Akane? I just got back from the Tendo's. I saw Akane crying, and I heard your name. I know you're at fault here!"

"Rain-check, Nemesis," Ranma muttered, then calmly sheathed the scythe away, reluctant to feel it's serene aura drain with it. He rolled his shoulder and sighed. "I wish you had stuck around there long enough for someone to explain."

"So you even admit to it?" Ryoga shouted, and after a slight hesitation Ranma nodded. The lost boy growled out loud. "That's it, Ranma, this time you will die!"

Some old fashioned sparring and venting, just the sort of thing Ranma wanted. Fighting the Senshi just wasn't the same as facing one of his rivals. Humiliating them just wasn't as fun, either.

Ryoga's first strike was a straight-forward punch. Ranma allowed it to come, and faster than his old rival could possibly expect, his own hands shot up and smacked the fist down. It came with such a force Ryoga stumbled and almost hit the ground. He growled and spun a leg around, intent on tripping Ranma.

Ranma smugness was childish he knew, but he smacked Ryoga's leg away with one of his own and grinned when it didn't even affect his balance. More weight, more speed, more strength... Twenty-five years of training widened the gap between the two like Ryoga could never believe.

More blows came, and Ranma easily deflected them in such a way that the only injuries Ryoga took were self-inflicted. Ryoga hit street poles, walls, the ground, trash cans, a parked car... With his Bakusai Tenketsu training, he was left mostly undamaged and continued plowing on. Ranma watched as he grew angrier and angrier, frustrated at the lack of contact, and at the same time so did his depression grow.

Finally, it hit the low and Ryoga brought out the ki attacks, _"SHISHI HOKODAN!"_ The green ball of depression shot from his fists and towards Ranma.

For a moment, Ranma was _confused_ at the choice of attack. Didn't- His eyes widened suddenly. _Ryoga doesn't know! Ryu-sensei had taught me!_ He could barely keep the grin off his face. The poor boy wouldn't even see it coming. Ranma held his left hand before him and channeled his own ki. _"Moko Takabisha: apathetic edition."_

A ball of snow white ki left his hand, and it met Ryoga's attack head on. As the attack broke through Ryoga's and continued on unhindered, Ranma did grin. Ryoga crossed his arms and took it in full.

Not one to disappoint, Ryoga managed to recover and continue the fight, though Ranma worked him down until his rival was out of energy and pinned him on the ground. Knowing Ryoga as he did, Ranma knew his rival would take the things he learned from this fight to try and find a new way to counter and eventually beat him. On that, Ranma wished him luck. He needed a challenge, from someone who wasn't a warmongering enemy.

"There are three ways to improve your ki attacks," Ranma quoted, thoroughly satisfied as he sat on the defeated Ryoga. "The first is to remove the emotional limitation. Raw ki is it's strongest. The second is to anchor 'negative' energy with your ki. If ki is life energy, find it's opposite and fuse them in a way that won't have them cancel out."

"And the third?" Ryoga spat out, further frustrated by this humiliating defeat. He couldn't hit Ranma _once_ after the opening blow.

_Finally you need to empower the attack with magic,_ Ranma remembered. His _sensei _hadn't been a fighter, but he certainly knew his stuff when it came to it. "Don't worry about it. Alright, look Ryoga. I'm leaving Nerima, probably for good. _That's_ why Akane was crying. Happosai went too far this time."

"Wha-what? He said that he wanted out help to test if you were ready to be a master! Why would you be leaving?" Ryoga was genuinely confused, but Ranma could also see the gleeful conclusions he was drawing now that Ranma would be away from Akane.

"I... don't really want to explain right now. Ask the Tendo's next time you see them, they'll explain." Ranma finally stood up, allowing the poor boy to breathe as his full weight was removed, then reached down to help Ryoga stand.

Ryoga looked worse for wear as he wavered on his feet, but he still managed to ask, "How did you get so strong? And heavy?"

Deciding on a partial truth, Ranma said, "I... trained at a... place where the gravity was roughly three times stronger."

Ryoga appeared to have missed the hesitations, but he suddenly perked up as he grabbed his back and umbrella. Ranma realized something then. What Ryoga had done his whole life with the weights wasn't much different than what Ranma had done with gravity, though it was a worse form.

Ryoga grew a fanged smile. "Higher gravity! Why didn't I think of it before? Farewell, Ranma. When I return, I shall be much stronger and I will defeat you. I will find this place of higher gravity and train there until I'm strong enough to beat you and win Akane!" He turned and left, leaving Ranma in the destroyed street.

Ranma blinked at the sudden departure. He wondered if he should have told Ryoga that the higher gravity place was a destroyed planet or that he had 'trained' there for twelve years. _Nah..._ With one final look at the damage around him, wincing slightly at how much would need to be repaired – it was funny how he started noticing that after Crystal started berating him for all the damages he was at fault of.

Finally, he simply left it behind him and continued the final few streets over to the Nekohanten.

XxX

Everything had changed.

Sipping her early morning coffee, Setsuna idly pretended to read a newspaper as her thoughts churned. She was thankful it was the weekend, so she was free from work for the moment. She greeted the chipper Hotaru as she stumbled into the kitchen for some breakfast, then looked back at the newspaper without reading.

Ranma was back. Plain and simple, everything came back to that. Ranma, not the boy every one of those supernatural martial artists yesterday had complained about, but _Ranma_, the man who had changed everything she had known about the Moon Kingdom. The man she had always wondered about the past of, of the time he had originally grew up in, and here she was in the present of it, the very day after he had been sent back and everything changed.

She was excited, she was nervous; she was, for the first time in who knew how long, _conflicted_ about her own emotions, and that was just about what she felt about meeting him again. His reappearance would have a profound impact on the other Senshi, the least of which another man besides Mamoru in their folds.

Ranma's presence changed their plans too. Now they would need to accommodate him. Of course, that was assuming he would remain with them. The cold, rationalizing part of her remembered clearly Ranma only remained with the Senshi because of Queen Serenity enforcing his loyalty. Without her, and without the threat he was promised to stand against, the infamous rogue Senshi could easily disappear forever.

Something about Queen Serenity rang bells in Setsuna's mind, and she frowned. She couldn't recall... what exactly she was forgetting, but it was something big. Something about the Queen, and Ranma's influence. Setsuna's frowned deepened, and she racked her mind harder, hounding the trail that seemed to be staying one step ahead of her.

With a spark of satisfaction, she found the start of it. Queen Serenity's death, and from there...

There was a knock at the door, prim and loud. Just three sharp raps.

A look at Hotaru showed the girl arms deep in a pan as she cooked her own breakfast. With a small sigh, Setsuna folded the unread paper and put the thought on hold for now. "I'll get it."

Setsuna idly wondered where Haruka and Michiru had gone so early in the morning, then just opened the door. It was Usagi, dressed casually, though she had an oddly stern look on her face, for some reason.

Not one to be impolite, Setsuna stepped aside for her, "Princess, I had believed we would be speaking at the meeting later today. Please, come in."

The blond girl seemed to hesitate only for a moment, staring into Setsuna's eyes, then she nodded and stepped in. "Sorry to intrude, but you and I need to talk. It's a matter of... great importance."

And that was Setsuna's first clue that something was wrong. Usagi didn't talk like that. Usagi was rarely serious, even at the most appropriate times. The Princess talked like that, and that side of Usagi only showed during... well, matters of great importance. Considering all that had happened, mainly Ranma and his interference, Setsuna knew better than to take this lightly.

Hotaru greeted Usagi from the kitchen, and the girl smiled and waved back, then muttered, "We will need to be alone for this." Setsuna stared at the Princess for a moment, trying to evaluate her, then just nodded and led her upstairs.

Setsuna's room held all her guilty pleasures, if one knew where to look. To the untrained eye, however, it appeared quite spartan, as would be expected of her. But everything in it was a personal choice, from the silk sheets just under her plain-looking blankets to the shaggy carpet - so much better than wood flooring during winter. She gestured Usagi to the sole chair of the room, a stark wooden construct with a thin cushion. Upon sitting, the girl seemed surprised by the comfortable way that cushion accommodated her, melting in her impression. Setsuna had found the chair in Sweden, another secret luxury.

"Not the sort of place I had expected for this, but it will do," the Princess mentioned, once Setsuna had the door closed. Setsuna raised an eyebrow at her, to which Usagi smiled and held up a single item. If Setsuna wasn't mistaken, it was her Disguise Pen, which Luna had given her. "I remembered making this for Selene, for her fifth birthday, to assist in glamors since she couldn't yet perform magic. So troublesome sometimes, when she used it to sneak out of the palace in her early teens."

The alarm bells of before suddenly came back in full. Setsuna's eyes narrowed for a moment, piecing together the meaning behind the comment, when it came to her in a single instant. Her eyes widened in genuine shock, and as she opened her mouth, 'Usagi' let her disguise drop.

Gold hair melted away, leaving behind an equally brilliant silver. Ocean blue eyes flashed to purple, and the crescent mark of the Lunar royalty appeared on her forehead. Other than that, surprisingly, there was very little change in her, but it was enough.

Setsuna staggered down to a knee, still gaping. Weakly, she brought her fist to her chest and bowed her head. "Queen Serenity..." she muttered, stuck between astonishment and reverence.

Like that, Setsuna could hear her Queen's hum of amusement. "Rise, my Time Keeper. It isn't as if this is your first time seeing me... Though this does bring back memories."

It took Setsuna another few moments to shove back her shock, reigning in her emotions. She should have seen this coming. The clues had all been there. Ranma's changes, the Queen's death... How could she have forgotten? Setsuna gulped unwillingly, then rose back to her feet. It took her a hesitant moment, but she finally met the other woman's eyes, the dark purple glittering in the light.

The woman, Queen Crystal Serenity IV, folded her hands across her lap, and although she was looking up at Setsuna, Setsuna felt like the nervous child before the evaluating eyes of a parent. After a moment, Queen Serenity nodded. "It is good to see you again. However, I'm afraid now is not the best time for catching up. We have things to talk about."

Setsuna almost shivered. Her Queen's words were soft, conversational, yet there was a hard edge to them that Setsuna recognized meant trouble for her. Her smile was frosty. "To start with, I would like for you to explain this... Crystal Tokyo to me."

"My Queen-" Setsuna tried, her tone pleading.

"Setsuna," Crystal interrupted, gently yet firmly. "I want you to explain, then we will discuss the consequences of your actions after."

Setsuna's stomach dropped. After a moment of panic and frustration, she resigned herself to it. This was her Queen, and she lived to serve. If she failed her Queen, then she would accept the... consequences with dignity. Her life's dream...

She spoke, voice monotone, "In the future, not far from now, there will be a great freeze that will wipe out most of the human race. By the time of the 30th century, Neo-Queen Serenity... Forgive me, I foresaw your daughter, not yourself. Neo-Queen Serenity will use the Ginzuisho to recover the planet and rule as its Queen. The Earth would prosper under her, flourishing and finally at peace. When forces moved against her, she banished all forms of evil and..." She trailed off, crimson eyes widened suddenly understanding. Crystal saw the look and nodded, then asked her to finish. Setsuna's head hung. "Banished all forms of evil and... chaos, leaving only peace behind. It is- was a Utopia in all ways, where evil _cannot_ be and with no chaos to disrupt it. It was the only true Utopia that could ever exist."

"You see now, don't you? Why that cannot be?" Queen Serenity asked. Her voice was softer, yet her stare still icy.

After a reluctant moment, Setsuna nodded. Chaos was a natural component in the universe, a balance to the Order of it. She had always known that, yet never had it seemed terribly important... Until she had met Ranma, a being the universe had marked out to be Chaos Generator. Just another of his many titles, yet that one held significance to herself - and to the Queen. Beyond the laws such a world as Crystal Tokyo would violate, beyond the fact that it would unbalance the entire universe localized to this one planet, it would be a world where Ranma could not exist.

And that last one, she wasn't sure she could live with yet. Not after she just got him back.

The Queen continued. "It was for this reason that I had banned the Time Keeper from looking into the future; the ability to see a 'better future' makes it tempting to alter the course of events to make it much more likely. One person should never have the ability to decide the future and fate of an entire solar system. Setsuna, I am well aware of your adjustments and subtle work in moving things towards that awful Crystal Tokyo, and I am also aware that you convinced my daughter and the other Senshi that it was the best future."

Queen Serenity, sitting in that plain chair with her back straight, held all the bearing she did if she sat on her throne in the Lunar Palace. "Your desperation for a better future is understandable, but you have overstepped your duty as the Guardian of Time. For that I shall restrict your abilities for five years." Setsuna cringed. "Give me your Garnet Rod."

The process was quick and did not at all seem like the shackling of the Time Keeper's cosmic abilities to influence and view the very flow of Time and all possible time streams. The Queen simply took Setsuna's staff, muttered a quick phrase, handed it back, and that was that. One of the most powerful magic items in the universe, the very symbol of authority for the Keeper of Time, was reduced to nothing more than an oddly shaped metal stick.

None of the dismay Setsuna felt holding her Garnet Rod showed on her face, and after a moment of her silent lamenting, she gently set the staff against the wall. She reminded herself again to accept her punishment with dignity. This was her Queen.

Matters now settled, Crystal grew a concerned frown, and she shifted uncomfortably. "Setsuna, what happened to Ranma after I died? Why is it that planet Nemesis is no more?"

Setsuna blinked. Of course, the Queen didn't know. She had died in the wake of the Lunar Palace's destruction, cast into the future with the other Senshi in Ranma's place. Taking a deep breath, Setsuna explained, "The war didn't end with the banishing of Metaria. You had taken some of her armies with her, but... once free of her control, the remaining demons were banded together and struck at Nemesis. Ranma felt it, and he left to aid his home world." At this, Setsuna hesitated, and Crystal's worry grew visible.

"Ranma... He didn't make it through, did he?"

Not all was lost, Setsuna reminded herself. "I couldn't see the details of the battle, how he and Nemesis's armies held against Makusu and the millions of demons, but it could not have been favorable. Ranma unleashed the Eris Ascension."

Queen Serenity sucked in a breath, and Setsuna understood why. Eris Ascension, Senshi Nemesis's planet cracker. It wasn't like Saturn's ability, which wiped out all the life on a planet. The Silence was raw destructive force, powerful enough to do that. The Eris Ascension was different, like a parasite. It leached all the magic it could - from every plant, person, animal, demon – and gathered it in the center of the planet, among the fiery chaos of the planet's core. Finally, it unleashed the energy like an explosive, an entire planet's worth of magic fueling it into something so powerful the planet ruptured as everything in range was disintegrated.

Setsuna had watched it happen, from the safety of the Time Gates. She had seen Nemesis crumble apart.

Crystal's composure wavered, and her gaze broke from Setsuna's to stare at her hands. Setsuna knew how she must feel, probably something similar to how she had felt watching it happen, and she knew she couldn't leave it at that. "However, Ranma didn't remain dead." The Queen's attention snapped back up, purple eyes wide and sparkling with unshed tears. "Certain... conditions were met, making him able to return. I am uncertain as to his current location, but he was returned yesterday."

After a few moments, the Queen asked softly, as if to make certain, "Ranma is alive?" Setsuna nodded once, firmly. Crystal exhaled a relieved sigh, a smile lighting up her face. "Thank the goddesses."

Silence fell between them, while Crystal mused to herself. Setsuna still could barely believe that her Queen was back, even though she should have remembered, and that she had gotten her abilities revoked - all within moments. She was still trying to come into grips that _Ranma_ was back.

Queen Serenity stood suddenly, a satisfied smile on her face. Setsuna looked over at her in askance, still more than a few inches taller. "My Queen?"

"You said Ranma returned yesterday, presumably to this time. I know enough to see that this is Japan, a place I had only heard about from Ranma's lips before. If I were him, I'd do what any sensible person would do. He's reuniting with his family, after twenty-five long years." Crystal winked at her. "Come, let us meet him in Nerima, before he has the chance to wander off."

Everything had changed.

XxX

Ranma stood before the Nekohanten. This was the last stop he had before he could leave, last bridge to burn before he could comfortably put Nerima behind him and move onto the real threat. However, he also knew that this might be the hardest to get away from and he didn't mean emotionally. He narrowed his eyes. He drew his scythe and, under the serenity it brought him, stepped inside.

Once his eyes adjusted to the dark room, he spotted Shampoo cleaning a table with her back to him. At the sound of the bell, the blue haired girl turned around with a smile. "Niha- Husband!" Her smile widened and she jumped towards him for a glomp. To Shampoo's surprise and happiness, Ranma didn't even attempt to dodge.

"_Husband?"_ Nemesis asked, her voice full of amusement. _"Someone left a little something out when describing their past."_

Ranma blinked. "Right... I forgot about that." His left arm returned the gesture, and he led the younger girl to one of the tables.

Cologne hopped out at the commotion. If she was surprised to see Ranma there, she didn't show it. "Son-in-law," she acknowledged.

Ranma looked up at her. The aged woman paused when she saw the differences in his face. "Uh... Grandma-in-law," he returned.

Cologne hopped closer. She saw Shampoo pressed against Ranma and narrowed her eyes when she saw Ranma's arm returning the embrace. She stopped when she noticed the scythe he was holding in his other hand. Cologne could feel the power the scythe radiated. Ki at the levels she had never seen before were contained inside the artifact.

She peered at Ranma over her staff. "Who are you?"

Ranma's knuckles tightened on his scythe, an act not lost by Cologne. "We have some things to discuss."

This man's ki looked very similar to Ranma's, but there was simply too much to be her son-in-law's. Cologne hopped off her staff and sat on the bench across from Ranma. He also looked a lot like Ranma, but he looked much too old as well, somewhere in his mid-twenties. If she didn't know better, she would think him to be Ranma's older brother. She asked, "What is it, boy?"

Ranma saw the cautious look in her eye. "To start with, I really am Ranma. Happosai did something stupid."

Cologne sighed and yelled at Mousse to bring in tea. She turned back to Ranma and nodded. She could believe that, but she was willing to be careful just in case. "What did Happi do?"

"Well, first off, he got himself killed," Ranma put out bluntly.

Cologne's eyes widened. Even Shampoo was stunned enough to let go of him and turn to her 'husband' in surprise. After a few seconds of them gaping, Ranma continued, "He opened up two portals, one for each of us. The fool got himself killed in his. I got twenty-five years in the past of 3,000 years ago."

Slowly, Cologne closed her mouth. She pulled out her pipe and thanked Mousse for bringing the tea. The man just glared at Ranma before stomping off. The old woman looked her age as she sat there in silence. Eventually, she looked up and said in a tired voice, "Please, go on." Shampoo even stayed quiet as she settled herself in for a story.

Ranma sighed and said, "Very well. Happosai was captured and used to seal something called a tunnel. Surprisingly, his last act in life was saving the world as demons were pouring from the tunnel, intent on wiping out the human race." Cologne frowned but didn't say anything. "For me… Well, a lot happened in twenty-five years. I'm not going to go into it, but I will say that my return is not just because I wanted to come back. An old enemy is going to come back soon, and I need to help fight it."

Cologne took a moment to stare at Ranma. Her eyes were narrowed as she thought it over. "So you wish for my help?"

Ranma shook his head before running a hand though his hair. "No, I want you off my back. I'm leaving Nerima to go find some people."

"Shampoo go with _airen,"_ the blue haired girl announced, looking firm in her decision.

Ranma glanced at her before turning his eyes back to Cologne. "She cannot come with me… And I'm not her husband."

"You are her husband by tribal law," Cologne muttered absently, thinking about this new situation.

Ranma frowned, thinking about it. "Does it take a wedding ceremony for us to be married?"

Cologne glanced up at him. "No. The kiss is all it takes. Why do you ask?"

"Well I'll be damned… I really _am_ married," Ranma murmured.

Cologne blinked at him. He had never acknowledged the marriage before. Apparently, Shampoo noticed this and latched onto his arm. "Husband go back to village now, yes? Shampoo be good wife."

Ranma noticed that Nemesis was strangely quiet. For the first time in his long life, he didn't reject the fact that Shampoo was his wife. However, he still pushed the Chinese girl away. "Either way, it doesn't matter. I need to leave, and you can't come with me."

"Amazons are warriors, Ranma. You seem to be forgetting this. Whoever you are going to fight against, she can help you," Cologne said to Ranma before taking a sip of her tea.

For some reason, a memory sparked forth in Ranma's mind. He remembered the special techniques he had seen on Jupiter, techniques he had seen from only one other group of people. He had no idea how, but the Amazons were actually descendents of the Jovian people, perhaps remnants that had survived the planet's destruction. Not to mention how biased the women were on Jupiter, a female dominated society were the women reduced men only to the physical labor. He made the connection easily, if not the _how._

He ignored the fact for the moment. "No, she can't help me. She will only get in the way or be killed."

The Amazon matriarch narrowed her eyes at him. "Who exactly are you going to be fighting, son-in-law?"

"Demons. An ancient kingdom of darkness. Take your pick, but they _will_ slaughter anyone in their path." Ranma looked down at Nemesis. "Believe me; these aren't the typical 'bad guys.'"

He looked back up at Cologne. "In the past, I joined a different kingdom to fight them. There were fighters there that could defeat _you_ single-handedly. Hell, even I can do that now with no problem. The Queen of that land…" Ranma closed his eyes as memories of Crystal flashed forth before he repressed them. "She was more powerful than you could imagine. All of us were slaughtered before this enemy. The Queen barely got a spell off that would send us all to the future where we would fight the enemy again, hopefully having a better chance."

He was bending the truth, but he didn't feel like having to explain every single thing. It would be simpler this way.

Cologne smoked her pipe in silence. Finally, she let out a weary sigh. "Why is it always like this with you, son-in-law?"

_Because I'm apparently a Chaos Generator,_ Ranma thought to himself before saying, "As I said, she cannot come with me."

"Shampoo _airen's_ wife. Go with to fight," Shampoo objected.

Before Ranma could respond, Cologne said, "She is right. As an Amazon and as your wife, she must come with you regardless of the danger."

Ranma's hand clenched his scythe tighter, but he didn't press to hard as he remembered that Nemesis was there. The aura washed away his mounting frustration. "She cannot come with me," he repeated. "Is there any way to get a divorce in your tribal laws?"

Cologne smirked, "As you Japanese would say, 'till death do you part'." She blinked when Ranma suddenly broke into a wide grin.

"Then it's settled. She's not my wife."

"Shampoo Ranma's wife," Shampoo repeated, thumping a fist against her chest. _"Airen_ even say so."

Cologne's eyebrows knitted together. "What do you mean, son-in-law?"

With a smirk, Ranma said, "I died. The spell revived me. So… Technically, we are not married anymore."

"But you are alive now, so you are married," Cologne countered.

Ranma didn't lose his smirk. "If a man in your village died, and then fifteen years later you saw him walking around again, would you force him to go remarry the Amazon?"

"No, we would have moved on by then. However, it has not been fifteen years, son-in-law."

"You're right; it's been 3,000 years," Ranma said, looking smug.

Cologne felt like this whole conversation was ridiculous, but she had come to expect ridiculous things while in Nerima. "This is different…"

Ranma shook his head. "No, it isn't. We were married, I died, and we aren't married anymore. End of story."

"And do you have proof of this, son-in-law?" Cologne asked, exasperated.

Ranma paused. How could he prove he had died? He looked around before his eyes snapped to his scythe. He lifted Nemesis and held her out to Cologne. "Would a witness count?"

Cologne looked at the scythe warily. She could still feel the ki inside it. It was like a person, but thousands of times more powerful. Knowing Ranma, she had no doubt she would get the proof she wanted if she touched the scythe. She slowly reached out and tenderly grasped the green and silver wood.

Immediately, a calming presence washed over Cologne. She felt it wash away her worries. Her age didn't bother her. The feeling was almost addictive. Before she could regain control over herself, a voice said in Cologne's mind, "_You are to believe my Avatar. He gave up his own life to save this solar system."_

Cologne could only gape at the voice. It was powerful, and very feminine. If she didn't know better, she would call the being inside the wood a goddess. She couldn't bring herself to question the voice or even respond.

Ranma snatched Nemesis away from Cologne. The old woman gasped in relief after that, finally able to control herself as the presence and aura left her. "Did you get the proof you needed?"

Cologne nodded wearily. Ranma breathed out a sigh. He glanced at Shampoo and immediately wished he didn't. The woman had tears in her eyes. "Shampoo- I…" he couldn't figure out what to say.

"Ranma doesn't love Shampoo," the cat-cursed woman muttered.

Ranma closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "No, Shampoo, I don't. I never have. You used too many spells, too many tricks. While it was nice that you accepted my cursed form, I don't think I could ever accept yours. I'm sorry, Shampoo, but this is the way it has to be."

The girl turned away from him and buried her face in her hands. Ranma suddenly remembered the last time he had told her a flat out refusal like this and even felt the same urge to comfort her. However, this was more official, and he couldn't afford to lapse back into his old life. He'd rather she be angry at him than in love with him. It was safer that way.

Ranma felt that is task here was done. He stood up from the table. Not even the peacefulness Nemesis gave him could completely mask the pain in his heart that he felt for destroying another girl's life like this. He hardened himself against it with the cold endurance he had gained from his time in the Moon Kingdom. He knew that this had to be done. It was this reason he had never been able to halt his fiancée problem before, and only now did he have the ability to do what had to be done.

Before Ranma left the restaurant, he asked, "What do you know about the Amazon techniques' origins?"

Cologne didn't look up at him. "That's an Amazon secret, son- …Ranma."

"No," Ranma said softly, just loud enough for them to hear. "That's a Jovian secret. Go back to China." With that, he was gone.

Cologne didn't know what to say to that. If he really had been around 3,000 years ago, he might know more about the techniques than her. However, she had no idea what he meant. Jupiter was a planet, not a tribe. Frowning, she turned to her great granddaughter. "Don't cry, child."

Shampoo didn't respond. Cologne smiled slightly. "Not all is lost."

Shampoo looked up at her. Her eyes were red and tears still fell, but she refused to sob. In Mandarin, she asked, "What do you mean, great grandmother? Ranma is no longer my husband."

"That doesn't mean you can't win him the normal way," Cologne said with a smile. Shampoo instantly understood what she meant and grew a small, hopeful smile. "Now, give him a few days before you go after him. And this time, _no tricks_. Win him honorably or push him away forever. I must get back to China to inform the elders on what has happened. I'll take Mousse with me to lighten the stress. Happy hunting, child."

"Oh thank you, great grandmother!" Shampoo cried in Mandarin as she hugged the old woman. Cologne smiled kindly and returned the hug. Shampoo released her and happily finished the day's work inside the restaurant.

As she watched Shampoo work, Cologne sighed and sipped some of her tea. Happi was dead. The blow hit her hard. Albeit, she had seen it coming sooner or later. He was even older than her and always doing stupid things. It would have caught up eventually. At least he had died for a good cause. Under his perverted, proud, and vain exterior, she knew him to be a somewhat honorable man. He would have preferred to go that way.

XxX

Nemesis's soothing aura flowed into Ranma through his contact with his scythe, deflecting away tension and regret as Ranma walked away from Nerima. He wasn't done with Nerima and its inhabitants, not by a long shot, but he wouldn't return until Metaria was dead.

"_One more distraction, Ranma, and I will force a coma on you to finish this conversation,"_ Nemesis threatened, though not without amusement.

Ranma snorted, but he was smiling. The butterflies were back inside his stomach. He still didn't have an answer.

Nemesis continued, more seriously, _"Ranma, I told you I loved you, you kissed me in response, and we haven't mentioned it since. I'll understand if it was an 'in the moment' thing, or if you just wanted some comfort before you died, but we need to at least talk about it."_

And there it was. Ranma closed his eyes, his mind falling back to that moment. The stench of demons and rotting corpses was in his nose, blood both wet and dried stuck to his face and garb. The bloodstained purple grass unique to Nemesis was under him, indifferent to the death and horrors raging across the planet. The only two people left standing in the area had been him and her...

Nemesis had begged, pleaded that he use the spell. The one that would take every demon down with her, including ones that were too powerful for even Ranma to beat single-handedly. And in that argument, Nemesis had confessed, thinking it wouldn't matter since she would be dead.

Yet, here they both were.

He sighed, genuinely at a loss. "I... I don't know what I feel for you. The games we play are fun, but I don't know if it goes beyond that. I'll admit that you're the closest to me any girl has ever got, but I don't know if you're the one I want to give myself to unconditionally."

Nemesis's voice was in control – conversational even – as she replied. She didn't wallow in sadness or desperation, anger or bitterness. _"Don't forget that Crystal announced you qualified for the laws of polygamy. I know about the others you care for, Ranma, and I know how they feel for you. It's not as helpless as you think."_

"That was 3,000 years ago, Nemesis. Crystal doesn't make the laws here. Not only that, but those were different people. Most should have grown up here and started new lives. They should all have their own husbands. I don't need to interfere with that. Even Setsuna had to have found someone by now."

"_But at least you acknowledge that you feel something for them,"_ Nemesis pointed out. _"And none of that is certain yet. What if Setsuna has been waiting for you all this time?"_

Ranma winced. He grunted, "It ain't fair to them. One man shouldn't just take as many women as he wants just because he wants them. I don't care what Mom or Crystal say, it ain't fair."

"_It is for them to decide, Ranma. Don't decide it for them."_ Ranma stayed silent. _"...What about me?"_

He sighed again. "I told you, I don't know. I'm not even sure about the others. You're right, I feel something for them, but is that love? Is it a brotherly love? Is it just a close friendship? How do I know if I love any of them the way a husband loves a wife?"

"_You can't keep running from this forever, Ranma. You will find that you are much happier when you finally settle down."_

"You don't understand."

"_Don't understand _what?" Nemesis asked, finally raising her voice. _"I'm not a human, Ranma! I've been around for more years than you could ever imagine. I've seen countless relationships rise and fall. I've seen the love that many shared; I've seen it become corrupt and wither in time. I had vowed to never mingle myself in such affairs, and yet, here I am, finally finding someone that I myself love. You're right, maybe I don't understand, but I certainly understand more about love than you ever could."_

Ranma glared up into the sky. "You're right. You understand more about love than I ever could. That's the part you are missing. I don't understand a damn thing about it."

Nemesis took a deep breath, audible over their link, that was purely for his sake since she didn't breathe. In a much calmer, more restrained voice, she said, _"Then maybe it's time to learn."_

Ranma felt the tension in him finally chip and wear away from the constant serenity offered by the scythe. His expression softened at her words. "We still have Metaria before us. I won't do a thing until that is settled, same promise I made in the Moon Kingdom. I'm not going to get anyone's hopes up only to have them shattered as once again a planet gets annihilated and we get slaughtered. After Metaria, I have apparently all of forever to find out what love is if we survive."

"_Then I shall wait until then, Ranma,"_ Nemesis said softly.

He didn't reply to that. Instead, he looked out to where he knew the remains of Nemesis to be. Even untransformed, he could always feel where the planet was located. However, he now felt a blurred scattering of it in countless locations instead of just one pinpoint. _I'll rebuild you, Nemesis,_ he promised solemnly, _I don't care how long it takes, you will become the life-bearing planet you once were._

The conversation was over, so Ranma took his hand away from her and the aura she provided. He was still drawing looks from everyone, but much less now that he wasn't talking to himself. It would still be some time before he reached Juuban. That left him with plenty of time to focus his thoughts.

His first priority was finding the other Senshi and Crystal, getting them united again. From there, he had an unknown amount of time to start training them before Metaria would begin breaking free. And if the threat of Metaria wasn't a big enough headache, he still didn't know the whereabouts of the few friends that survived Metaria's massacre, like Yuka and Xycell. His Urgoks had been a prime source of firepower, yet he didn't know the status on them either.

He had so many things ahead of him to worry about, it just didn't make sense to complicate it further by adding a big tangle of love. He couldn't afford the distraction.

This time, Metaria would fall.

* * *

AN: Alright, as old fans might notice, I'm trying to be a bit more standoffish, along with having shorter AN's. More story, less author, cause let's be honest, it's what we're all here for.

As for the story, well... there you have it. You should have an idea of the differences now, both in the style of this and the direction it's going. You might recognize a few conversations and events from before, and that'll be true for the next couple of chapters, but even so the differences will become more obvious as well.

I know there's a distinct lack of action in this chapter, but hey, I just put the pot on the stove. It'll get cooking soon. Yes, bad joke, I know. Chapter length, 20k.

Until next time!

-Sub


	3. Reunion

Reunion

* * *

"I'm terribly sorry, it seems you just missed him," a kindly, brown haired girl replied.

Crystal gave no reaction when Setsuna looked over at her, but inwardly she muttered a little curse. _It figures... If he isn't here, we won't be able to find that man anywhere. Ranma, you are such a troublesome person._ She smiled slightly.

The woman who had opened the gate from them was young, with innocent eyes and a cheerful presence. Very pretty, as well as modest with her hands clasped before her apron. If she had to guess, Crystal would say this was Kasumi, whom Ranma had always recalled fondly. It was kind of exciting, meeting one of the people who had known Ranma before the events that sent him to the past.

"Would you happen to know where he's gone?" Crystal asked, finding it took no effort to remain pleasant with this girl.

Kasumi returned her smile, apologetically. "I'm afraid he's left to find some friends, and I don't think he will be coming back any time soon. He has just moved out, you see, no less than one hour ago. If you would like to leave your number, we can forward you his new residence when he contacts us."

"Oh, that won't be necessary. Thank you for your time," Crystal waved off, and with a few more smiles and words, Kasumi returned back inside.

Standing there with Setsuna, Crystal put a finger to her lips in thought. If Ranma had already left, she was certain they would not be able to find him on their own terms. The good news was, it appeared he was in the process of searching for them. While the Senshi's presence wasn't exactly broadcasted with neon lights and spot lights, it shouldn't be terrible difficult for him to track them down. That meant they're best bet was to wait.

She looked over at her companion and saw her silent demeanor. "What has you standing there like a statue, Setsuna? I thought we were over this stage."

The Senshi of Time had been distracted the most of their time together, though it was highly understandable. It had been 3,000 years, give or take, since they had last spoken after all, and Setsuna had lived every day of those, while Crystal hadn't. She liked to think that they had been friends back during her reign, though she could not deny that the guidelines between Queen and subject had always been met between them. Setsuna did not yet know how to behave around her.

"Forgive me, I've just been had a lot on my mind," was the steady reply, and that was understandable too.

Well, it seemed there was only one thing left to do. Crystal hooked her arm with Setsuna's, surprising the woman, and she smiled at the green haired Senshi, bemused. "Since there is nothing more we can do about Ranma, all we can do is wait until the meeting. So let's have some ice cream before then."

_That_ aroused a smile from Setsuna, and she shook her head at Crystal in amusement. "Of course, Serenity-sama."

Crystal felt a flicker of satisfaction, both at getting Setsuna to smile and at the thought of ice cream. While her merge with her daughter had been entirely in her favor, some of Usagi's traits had carried over to her own personality. The love of ice cream was one of them...

Her shoe snagged on a loose stone suddenly, and Crystal went hopping wildly to one side. She nearly clung to Setsuna's arm in desperation, until the woman managed to help her regain her balance.

...Usagi's clumsiness was another. The duo shared a look and a laugh before continuing on their way.

Setsuna had always been one of stiff formality and subservience with her as Queen Serenity, but she was also a strong, independent woman capable of making and achieving her own goals. It shouldn't take too long for Setsuna to again be comfortable with her, and hopefully by then they could again be friends.

Of course, Setsuna was only one worry. Crystal's merge with Usagi didn't just mean she had lost her daughter, Selene, but also that the other Senshi had lost their friend. Usagi had had close bonds with Ami, Rei, Minako, Makoto, and... and especially Mamoru, whom had recently become engaged to her. How would they react to the fact that the daughter had been replaced by the mother?

Not well, Crystal presumed. It wasn't like she had intended for this to be the case. She had sent her daughter forward with her blessing and the ownership of the Ginzuisho. There could be only one wielder of the mystic weapon, so when she herself had also been sent forward into the future... There had been no choice but to merge.

There was more to it, considering the boundaries of Time, Ranma's interference in the past, and other factors she could only barely grasp after her 300 years of experience, but the truth of it was there had been no choice but for her to merge with her daughter. So while it may not have been her intent, she would have to deal with the repercussions. She was not looking forward to the moment when the truth would come out. It was why she so very much wanted that ice cream.

XxX

"Well, that was fairly convenient," Crystal commented as she put away her communicator, then took another bite of her triple scoop chocolate sundae, topped with hot fudge, caramel, almond flakes, and a dash of whipped cream. It was... heavenly.

"What is?" Setsuna, her rivaling ice cream a modest double scoop cone, nearly half devoured.

Crystal smiled into her next bite. "Ami feels an overwhelming urge to get as much of her school work and studying done today, and asked if we could have the meeting tomorrow."

Setsuna arched an eyebrow. "Worried?"

Crystal reflected the question for a moment, then nodded once. "I am not looking forward to it."

"The Sailor Scouts are strong girls, despite their young ages. You have seen the things they have accomplished together, the trials they have faced and evils they have triumphed. The loss of Usagi will damage them, shake them at their core, but they will pull through as they always have," Setsuna acknowledged, imparting her impression of the reincarnated Senshi.

Crystal smiled her thanks, though it did little to help. She changed the conversation to Ranma, not failing to notice how Setsuna's face lit up at his mentioning. While Setsuna hadn't been the most antisocial of Senshi, her friends had been few during her time in the Moon Kingdom. Ranma had made himself one of them.

Enslaved to her duties of guarding the Gates of Time, Setsuna must have been crushed by loneliness after the fall of the Moon Kingdom. The poor woman had had no one for so long, isolated from the world as she was. Through Usagi's memories, Crystal could recall Setsuna's sad eyes during their first meeting, so different from the crimson orbs now bright with emotion as they spoke.

Having Ranma back meant the world to the Senshi dubbed the lone warrior. He was an old friend, perhaps even a romantic interest. Crystal was happy for her, glad to see something that might begin to heal the years of loneliness.

And if Crystal's own face had brightened from the conversation, well, Ranma just had that effect on people sometimes. Nothing had ever been dull with him around, always making things exciting with the trouble he'd cause. And the poor boy was just so much fun to tease. Crystal had very rarely spoken with the enigmatic being known as Nemesis, but it was a point they both agreed on.

The two finished their ice cream, still deep in conversation as they finally left the building, wearing a matching pair of smiles.

"It almost makes me afraid to think of how he might reunite with us," the former Queen said, shaking her head in amusement.

The sun was past midway, making the shadows from the stacked buildings lining the street long enough to provide good shade. It wasn't that it was unreasonably warm out, but it was just one of those days where it felt better outside of the sun's glare. The sidewalk and streets were crowded with people, as was typical, in addition to all the city noise that came with it. Crystal and Setsuna began making their way back towards the older woman's apartment.

"It can't be worse than the hot-springs incident," Setsuna replied dryly, then laughed at the memory.

Crystal laughed with her. "Oh yes, the day dear Ranma saw all the Senshi in their skin. I don't think I had ever seen you blush quite like that before."

"I reacted quite rationally, in comparison to the others," Setsuna defended. "I gave him the chance to explain, did I not?"

"Yes, you did, but you could not look him in the eye the week following," Crystal reminded with a wink. Not that Setsuna had anything to be ashamed of, she noted as her eyes ran along the older woman's form appreciatively.

Oh, Crystal didn't bat for the other team, she had had a husband and a daughter after all, but one didn't reach her age without certain thoughts about her fellow gender.

Alas, all good things must come to an end. "I'm down this way," Crystal mentioned, gesturing towards the right. Spending her day with Setsuna had been a welcomed evasion, keeping her from confrontation with Usagi's friends and allowing her to relax, but come tomorrow she would have to explain herself. Reigning over an entire solar system and wielding unimaginable power helped little when it came to bearing the burden of bad news.

Setsuna nodded, her own fond smile slowly fading. "I will see you tomorrow, Serenity-sama." Will a parting wave, she stepped off the sidewalk and continued on her way, likely filled with thoughts and possibilities, reflecting over their meeting and what it might bode for the future.

Setsuna was a good woman. She had been loyal to the kingdom, like her mother before her, but she also cared about her friends. Through Usagi's memories, she had seen Sailor Pluto's selfless exploits to protect the other Senshi, always aloof from them but never hesitant to take the bullet, so to speak. Even that dreadful Crystal Tokyo, it had been with the best interests in mind, none of it self-serving power, and Setsuna fought for that goal with singular determination, unwilling to let anything stand in her way.

Against a mind like that, Crystal had been almost reluctant to confront her over it, in case the dedication to that dream overtook her dedication to herself. One couldn't command away an idea, only show the faults of it. Lucky for her, there were many of those.

And all these thoughts were only further delaying her from returning home. Crystal sighed, finally breaking her gaze away from Setsuna's shapely retreating form. She would say one thing: for a millennia old princess, Setsuna's choice of sweatpants and an old baggy t-shirt was quite interesting.

XxX

_So I didn't find them the first day. In my defense, Juuban is a big district, and it wasn't like the Senshi were doing anything to advertise their presence. _

XxX

Ranma closed the door behind him, letting out a breath as he did. All day he had searched, and all he had found was a general buzz of excitement about the city's magical guardians, the beautiful Sailor Scouts. That meant that they were here, undoubtedly, and that they had awoken their powers if not their memories.

As night fell without further progress, Ranma had retired into a relatively cheap hotel. In Tokyo, the only way to find cheap was a cramped room, no windows, a bathroom the size of a closet, and a bed that could not have fit two children comfortably yet still filled most of the room. Still, despite the pressed living spaces the hotel staff didn't slack, and the room was spotless, the air carrying a trace of freshener. It was even air conditioned.

Taking all one step to get from the door to his bed, Ranma slipped a massive, black bag from over his shoulder and set it on the bed. He zipped it open and revealed the sole item contained within. His scythe was maybe five and a half feet long, the wood an inch and three-fourths before the thick, silver veins grew over it. The black blade was three inches at base, stretching out another three feet even with it's curve. The bag he had chosen for it may have been huge, but it was the only way to get the weapon concealed properly.

His hand reached in and grasped the faithful weapon, and waves of peacefulness flowed in from the contact, spreading through his entire being. It felt good to be holding it again.

"_Ranma, I understand the reason for it entirely, and I agree with you wholeheartedly," _Nemesis piped the moment Ranma's hand came in contact with her. _"However, I am _not_ going in that bag again. It is unbefitting as well as uncomfortable. You made me this way, so you are tasked with escorting me properly until I have constructed myself another body."_

Ranma rolled his eyes. "We both know you are just saying that because you want me to bribe you, which ain't gonna happen." He paused for a moment. "Speaking of, when do you think you will start making another body? Can you even do that anymore?"

The guilty smile was obvious in her voice, before turning sly._ "Not true. But if you're thinking about it, I suppose I _might_ be bribed into go back into the bag. Perhaps a hot, sweaty, passionate night will do. Each time you want me back in there."_

"Like I said, not gonna happen."

"_At least consider it, Ranma. It's win-win for you,"_ she goaded, voice lowering seductively.

"Nemesis, the body?" Ranma asked.

"_Spoilsport... Yes, of course I can, though it will take a good amount of time to finish. Typically nine months for just a baby, and then a lifetime for an adult. I'll try and hurry it, though. For the other question, I won't start until you've found a place to settle down, otherwise you'd be carrying around a half-constructed body too."_

Ranma sat down on the bed, ignoring how the springs shrieked their protest at his unnatural weight, and rubbed his eyes. "Good point."

The next time Nemesis spoke, her voice carried traces of worry, _"Ranma... There's something I've been meaning to tell you about. I don't think you've been able to notice it yet due to our proximity."_

He frowned. "What's wrong?"

"_You know how this scythe is full of my energy, both ki and magic, and how some of my magic leaks out into the air."_ He nodded slowly, confused as to what she was getting at. _"Perhaps it would be easiest if you simply left the room and returned. Leave me on the bed."_

Ranma did so, and when he came back his eyebrows were furrowed. He picked up the scythe again, and the aura did little to relieve the sudden tension at the small of his back. "Nemesis, is this a trap laid on the building? Should I be preparing for a fight?"

Magic was everywhere. While not the force of life itself, it was life and nature that produced magic. Nemesis the planet, where he had always drew his magic from as a Senshi, had been full of flora, animals, humanity, rivers and oceans, mountains and deserts. Magic was always found in nature. It's why even though the planet was lost, there were still the rocky remains of it, and that was enough to continue supplying him.

Planets and stars were the prime sources of magic because of the sheer abundance they produced. They contained so much life, magic leaked out into the very air around them, a low buzz one could always feel if they knew what to look for. Holding Nemesis he felt it because she still produced magic, pumping traces of it into the air around her.

Leaving the room, the buzz was simply... gone. There was no magic in the air, other than what Nemesis was producing. It was as unsettling as walking into the heart of a city and hearing absolutely no sounds. Like trying to lean against a wall and suddenly finding it not there. It was_ wrong._

Which brought the question of how it was possible. Someone could have spelled the building in a way that removed all the magic from it, likely intending to weaken Ranma on that front before killing him with some physical method, likes guns or other weapons. But that would mean two things. First of all, the person doing it would have to be a heavy-hitter in the magical department to pull off a spell like that, and honestly limiting themselves more than they would him. Joy, more proficient, non-Senshi magic users. Secondly, it meant the person or whomever it was doing it didn't know Ranma was a Senshi himself, because he could always draw magic in from Nemesis.

"_You are not under threat. At least not presently,"_ Nemesis put in quickly. Ranma allowed himself to relax, just a little. He trusted her. _"I noticed this from the first moment we appeared at this time. The entire forest was nearly empty of magic, as was Nerima and now everywhere in Juuban."_

That shouldn't be possible. It couldn't be. "Nemesis, what does it mean?"

There was a long moment of silence from her. That, more than anything, worried him. Finally, she said quietly, _"It means, dear Avatar, that Terra is dying."_

"...Dying?"

"_Yes,"_ she answered simply, and there was sorrow in her voice. She took a moment, and then her voice came out in it's usual quality. _"I just wanted this pointed out for you. It isn't a matter of concern for you, but do keep it in mind if you ever find yourself in a fight without my magic."_

"Wait, Nemesis, you just said Earth is _dying!_ That's-"

"_Ranma, drop it. Now,"_ Nemesis cut in. Her voice wasn't sharp at all, yet Ranma stopped as if she had been screaming. _"I know what I said. I know what it means. But there isn't anything you can do about this. Not until I can speak with Terra herself."_

Terra. According to Nemesis, it was the only other planet to have given itself human form, like herself. At least, it had one 3,000 years ago. Ranma had never met Terra, but Nemesis spoke about her at times. The thought was always... strange, picturing two planets having a conversation. Nemesis had explained it, but he still didn't see how it was possible.

After a frustrated second, he deflated and fell back on his bed, near deafening himself from the springs ringing. He drew in on her aura, used it to relax himself and accept things. Nemesis knew what she was doing, and she knew she would have his support whenever she needed it. If she asked him to drop it, obviously there was nothing he could do.

Now that he was lying down, he could feel how tired he actually was. The room may have been claustrophobically small, especially compared to the royal quarters he had been sleeping in for the last two years, but right then the bed felt just perfect. Holding Nemesis didn't tire him, but it helped him stay perfectly relaxed as he lay there, making sleep only a step away.

"_As fair warning,"_ Nemesis said as he felt himself beginning to doze off, _"I have an idea about altering the way you sleep and dream. For the next few nights, I'm going to be experimenting with a few things. It is in your best interest, I assure you."_

"Mhmm," he mumbled, "Thanks, Nemesis..."

Her tone was suspiciously coy, _"Oh, don't thank me just yet."_ And then he was out.

XxX

_Hotaru didn't want him to go._

_It was late in the night, with all but the servants asleep in the palace. He was in her chambers with her, so agonizingly close yet it was no tryst. They were sitting on her bed, him next to her on the edge. They had been speaking for the last several hours, and finally things were wrapping up._

_She had just gotten him back, her secret guardian from Nemesis. Years ago, he was torn away from her, never to be seen again. Yet he had come back, perhaps not in the best of ways, and they had reunited. She had invited him into her room to catch up with him, though she had secretly hoped for more. Oh, nothing too lascivious – he was too moral for that, for anything without commitment – yet anything would have been acceptable, from a kiss on the cheek to him simply sleeping in here, like he used too back in younger days._

_Finally, he stood from the bed, giving her partings. Hotaru knew she would have to take things into her own hands then, and her heart gave a little skip of excitement at the idea._

_He was nothing but a gentleman outside of combat, giving her a handsome smile as he turned to leave. She intended on using that. "We aren't still so much enemies that I don't even get a kiss goodbye, are we?"_

_That stopped him mid-step, and he arched an eyebrow at her. Hotaru felt the beginnings of a blush, but she committed herself, crossing her arms before her middle. "Well?"_

_He shook his head and let out a low chuckle. "Of course not, Hotaru."_

_In one step he was to her, and her heart suddenly lurched into a frenzy right before he bent down and kissed her, almost too fast for her to realize it was about to happen. Hotaru wanted to melt into the kiss, get her arms around him and hold him there, but before the pleasant shock tingling in her limbs faded enough for her to move them, he had already pulled back with a boyish grin._

"_Goodnight, Hotaru," he muttered. "I'll see you tomorrow with the others." And then he was gone, clicking the door softly behind him._

_Hotaru fell back onto her bed with a silly smile. It had been perfectly chaste, she knew, but the key word there was perfect. Or maybe her mind was still a little fogged from it. Hotaru giggled to herself._

Hotaru woke up, still with a silly little smile. That went away as reality came back to her, reminding her that it hadn't been real. "Shoot," Hotaru mumbled to herself. It was the same dream-man though, which was slightly surprising, and she still hadn't gotten his name. "Double shoot."

Just then, Setsuna-mama peaked her head in for her morning wake up. Hotaru smiled blearily at her, and Setsuna-mama laughed softly before ducking back out, her presence not needed. "Don't forget we have a meeting later today, Hotaru," Setsuna reminded from behind the door. "This one is important."

_Aren't they all..._ Hotaru thought to herself with a mild case of morning grumpiness. Nothing she would say aloud though, not to someone as nice as Setsuna-mama. After another moment of just lying there, she pulled herself up.

She was really starting to like these dreams, though. She hoped it would be the new pattern, her and her dream-man, even if he wasn't some reincarnated lover. Just remembering it could brighten her day, and daydreams needed a subject to draw from.

With another yawn and rubbing away sleep, Hotaru began to get ready for her day.

XxX

Ranma woke up still holding Nemesis. He took one deep breath, staring up at the ceiling. He slowly counted to ten, then exhaled. After taking another breath, he said, "Nemesis, that was you that produced that dream." It was not a question.

Nemesis's response came light, though it was obvious she was trying to keep a laugh out of her voice. _"Actually, in my experience those are the types of dreams men get from too much sexual tension and not enough relief."_

"Nemesis..." he pressed, not quite angry but not pleased.

This time, the woman's laugh did fill his head, and he sighed in exasperation. _"I told you my terms if you wanted me back in that bag."_

"Really now," Ranma huffed, a light blush on his cheeks, "you've done a lot since we've met, but I think this one is the worst yet."

"_Oh please, all I did was stimulate certain parts of your brain while you were asleep. Who you were with and what you did was all up to your mind after that, though I must say I was quite pleased with the results. Now, if I had entered your dreams and made something of it, we would be having an entirely different conversation."_

"So was that the great surprise you have for me involving my dreams?" Ranma asked, finally beginning to pull himself off the bed.

"_No, no, not at all,_" Nemesis replied dismissively, surprising him. He wouldn't put it past her to have had only that in mind. _"That was only a test, like I said involving stimulation to certain parts of your brain. It is only the beginning of something much, much greater."_

Nemesis sounded genuinely enthusiastic about whatever it was she was working on, and he actually felt it wasn't just something perverted from her. "Any hints as to what you're planning?"

There was a hum, and then, _"I don't want to spoil the surprise, but if I can stimulate parts of your brain, make it react how it would in certain situations and scenarios... Think about if I am able to stimulate other parts of your body, muscles, bones, nerves..."_ There was satisfaction in her voice.

Ranma blinked. "You mean like-"

"_Ah, ah. No more questions,"_ Nemesis chided, amusement coloring her words. _"Now, you have some lost Senshi to find. So unless you want to go to bed for a repeat performance, with the real me this time, I suggest you get to it."_

Ranma blushed again and stuffed the scythe into the bag, Nemesis's pleasant laugh abruptly cutting off in his head as he let go. He could handle Nemesis's teasing, whether they were speaking on their secluded grass hill or in his bed, but what he couldn't yet handle was her in his head. It was one thing to have that kind of dream about her, and another to know she had watched it happen.

Grumbling as he got himself ready to head out, Ranma's mind wandered back to the details of the dream. Alright, so maybe it wasn't so bad, and maybe he kind of enjoyed it. It still didn't give her the right to do that.

"Crazy, perverted planet," he concluded finally, shouldering the black bag after finishing in the small washroom. Even without touching the scythe, Ranma could practically hear her response to that. And it left him smiling, shaking his head as amusement warred with irritation._ Yeah, I know, you're _my_ crazy, perverted planet._

He left the room.

XxX

Claws flashed, slitted eyes cold and narrowed. Green blood spilled into the air, an inhuman death-scream unleashed. She was getting stronger. Every _damned_ day, she was getting stronger. Recovering an inch away from death, she recovered stronger than before; striking down another enemy, she grew stronger. It wasn't normal - it wasn't _human_ - but she knew she was neither. She was past tears, but, damn it all, she knew she was neither.

The demon before her crumpled, joining the others she had already ripped to pieces. Her tails brought the last before her, one tail restraining its flailing limbs and the other muzzling its gnashing maw. Against her will, the Nekomata yowled in demonic fury. The demon, too foreign to be classified, struggled to roar back. She lashed out with her claws and not-so-cleanly severed its head.

The body twitched for a moment before going still, blood squirting in the air like so many before it. Furred chest heaving, she discarded the demon with the others.

Years had gone by, how many she did not know, but _years_ had gone by and she had been trapped in this hellhole. Standing beside the last of her friends, she had been swept away in the pink light that Queen Serenity had unleashed. When she had 'awakened,' she was in this twisting black world, surrounded on all sides by enemies.

She knew Queen Metaria had been trapped here as well, but she also knew that the Dark Moon leader had been struck down some years ago. Now, she had to deal with the remaining forces of the former queen, and deal with them she did. Every day was marred with the spilling of blood, either hers or theirs.

Currently, she was safe for the time being. Without their leader, the demons had broken into pods and separated, ambushing and slaughtering other pods that let their guard down. Only she was alone, only the Nekomata.

And she had paid for it… many times. There were times where she was sure she would die, lying defeated and bleeding before the remaining members of a pod she had been ambushed by. Yet, strangely, she always recovered, but at the same time so would they if she didn't end up killing a demon officially, she learned.

She was a demon, just like them. She knew that ever since she was undoubtedly banished with the rest. And like a demon - the old phrase came to mind - what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. And she was stronger.

She didn't sigh as she crouched down, looking very cat-like, and licked her claws clean. The bitter taste of demon blood didn't bother her stomach anymore. Her clothes were rags, too. She would have to loot some more when she found another batch of remaining 'soldiers.' Food was not an issue as well, not in that twisting world of darkness.

Knowing she was safe, for at least another hour, the cat woman curled into a ball for a quick nap. Always a quick nap. Then she would hunt again - hunt or be hunted. Hunt _and_ be hunted.

Things didn't make sense anymore to her, not in that world, but they didn't need to. She lived by her primal needs, or maybe her demonic needs. Human thought, once the thing that drove her on, was now in the background. Only her base instincts guided her. Memories, emotions, cognition - all of it was minimal if not nonexistent.

After her nap, she would be on the prowl again. A prowl to survive. And survival was all she had. Maybe it was best she didn't have to think about it.

XxX

In that twisted world, with an abyssal sky and jagged terrain, the Nekomata crouched with a predatory air. A chunk of black rock hid her, with her purple eyes gleaming like a cat's as she peered from the darkness. Silence was instinctive to her, and enhanced hearing told her of no approaching threats.

Less than a day ago, she had stumbled across a solitary man - a Dark Moon soldier. That was strange, as every other she had come across were in pods of three or more. However, after tracking him in a silent prowl, she found him to be as alone as her. Not lonely; alone. This man moved with purpose… and power. He had already slain three pods in that day she followed, one of which was even a team of ten fellow soldiers.

Six hours ago, however, he had set up a rugged camp (deep in a crevice, fire small enough to attract no attention, only one way in - the way any 'camp' must be in that banished world). The Nekomata knew she had found it only because he had never left her sight. For the last five of those hours, the man had sat cross-legged, head bowed, and chanted. Her fur stood on end from the flowing magic, but soon she would strike him down.

Lee, ex-General of the Dark Moon Kingdom, felt rising excitement as words flowed from his mouth. The hole in the ground he was currently residing at had a special quality that caused sound to echo and magnify for those inside it, and so far he had heard nothing enter. He was almost in the clear, just a few more moments.

As he started the last phrase of magic, Lee's words took a ring of triumph. They grew louder and louder, until he was screaming in glee. And then, it was done. His cry still echoed in the rocky encampment, and he dimly noticed that he was standing victoriously, head tilted back for his bellow. Before the last tone died out, a satisfying _rip_ could be heard, starting a new echo.

Lee opened his eyes to see a sickly yellow portal before him - his way out of that forsaken world of twisting blackness. A smile broke across his wearied face, looking out of place among that haunted hardness that the rest of his face was locked in. He took a step forward.

She pounced.

With a feline growl, the Nekomata came claws first towards Lee, who spun in a split-second and drew his sabre. It was too late for that, however, and he went down in a heap from her weight. She jumped off him the moment he hit the ground, claws intentionally ripping out chunks of his shoulders while doing so.

Lee's armor had worn away around two years ago, and the claw marks only added new holes to the rags that had once been a fine tunic. His blood only freshened the stains on it. Furious, he charged towards the cat demon in perfect form despite his wounds.

Her eyes glowed purple in the fire's dull light like suspended amethysts as she watched his approach. A tense of her hind legs led her into another pounce. She used one of her two tails to hold his sword-arm still as she swiped at his throat. Lee surprised her by instead using his left arm to land a solid blow between her breasts, sending her tumbling into the sooty ground.

She ended the roll on her feet, knees bent in a very catlike crouch. The fur along her back stood on end as she hissed at him.

Lee finally recognized his opponent, distinguishable from other demons by her equally tattered clothing. It had been… four or five years since he had last seen her, and three before that. Her name escaped his mind, but he recognized her. "You," he sneered at her, his voice hoarse from lack of use.

A faint trickle of memory brought up a visual of the man for the Nekomata, along with his name, when she had met him long ago, but her human mind was too far off for her to acknowledge him beyond that. Instead, she hissed again before pouncing.

Sabre met claws with a surprising clang. Again, however, she was knocked back by an unexpected twist of the sword that ended with the hilt in her throat. She made pitiful choking sounds as she gasped for breaths that didn't come.

Lee approached calmly. He could tell the girl was powerful in her own right, but by all means she had no real technique. She was a mere brawler against a trained fighter, a savage against a soldier; she stumbled where he would dance.

Instinct to survive had her react despite her ailment. She dove to the side as he swung down in a controlled arc, and was forced to jump again as he flowed through sword forms. The grace inherited by her demonic nature was her only means of survival against his onslaught, and she was forced to recover her breath in the midst of dodging wildly.

In his mind of a hardened soldier, Lee dimly noticed the latent potential of this girl if she were to be trained. Much grace for her inexperience, unknowingly moving without any wasted energy. He was slowly guiding her towards one of the jagged, black walls of the crevice. She would be pinned there, he knew, and then her grace would be of no help.

Only a few times was she able to attack offensively, a wild swipe at his leg as she darted away from his blade or a lash of her tail when trying to slip through his guard. Some part of her mind, stuffed in the back for years, yelled things to her, but the demonic part of her didn't take the time to comprehend it.

The Nekomata yowled as the sabre left a deep gash on her arm from a thrust, but she was satisfied to know that her claws tasted blood once again at the same time. Lee frowned at his bleeding forearm, but he didn't delay in starting his flowing assault once again. Yuka was forced another step back as she smoothly slid to the side of the bloody blade.

The yellow portal, sickly in color and jagged in shape, was still humming ominously off to the side - the reward of the victor.

A cold feeling swept through the cat demon when one of her tails brushed against the rock wall behind her, and the screaming in the back of her mind grew more frantic and louder. She was cornered - and desperate.

Lee's low swing flowed into an overheard strike. The curved nature of the wall left very little options for his opponent. With a shout, he brought his sabre down.

Fear trickled through the Nekomata's spine at the sight of the descending blade. The mind of a demon wasn't enough to think of a way out, and the screaming in the back of her mind was almost consuming what was already there. In the desperate move for her life, her two tails stopped the swing at his wrist.

Lee didn't even have to think as he brought his foot up and lashed out - a perfect side kick in her soft stomach. Her tails released his wrist as she slammed into the jagged rock wall, black as everything else in that world. One particular edge of the obsidian stone was sharp enough to leave a gash just beneath her right shoulder blade.

The Nekomata's head had also slammed into the rock, and with that, the dam broke free. The screaming in the back of her mind was revealed to be her human thoughts long suppressed, and the jolt gave that mindset the chance to be dominant once again. With a cry of her own voice, _she_ was back. _Yuka_ was back.

Her amethyst eyes opened to the same position she already was in, and the all too human chill of fear filtered through her stronger than what her demonic side could ever feel. Pain lanced through her in more areas than one, but the pounding of her adrenaline masked it like it always did.

However, she knew she was far from defenseless. With the knowledge of a thousand slain foes and the guiding of demonic instincts for killing, she slid down into a catlike stance and waited.

Lee noticed a slight alteration in her outward expression, but he dismissed it. He took another step forward and prepared for the finishing blow.

It was a decapitating swing, angling downward in preparation for her attempted counter. As Lee expected, she stopped the swing with a lightning fast tail, holding him at the wrist. He was stepping forward again the moment her tail twitched, and now was bringing up his knee for another stunning blow that would leave her off-guard for the real killing blow. But that plan never came into fruition.

Yuka's second tail moved at the same time as the first, and this once lashed his shoulder the same time the first thrust him back, knocking him off balance momentarily. Almost as fast, he was leveling himself for a counter even as he searched for his center, but she was first.

Her clawed hands grabbed both of his wrists bone-crushingly tight instead of performing another catlike attack, and her tails bound his still stumbling legs. Lee's eyes widened in surprise as he suddenly found himself suspended in the air. He tried to twist his hand enough for his sabre to strike her, but with a snap she broke his wrist and the sword slipped from his grasp.

Yuka screamed in fury, too human to be a yowl, before jerking him close and biting into his throat with her fangs. Sweet, disgusting blood gushed into her mouth. She felt his neck vibrating as he screamed before she ripped a chunk out. A major artery was severed, and crimson sprayed into the air as it had so many times before.

She tossed him into the jagged wall across from her, and his screams jerked silent there as he slumped down, still bleeding a torrent from his neck. Her rough tongue worked its magic in cleaning the blood off her face and wherever else it landed on her. She hated how much she liked the taste, how it made her want to vomit. Only human blood, she knew; demon blood was simply gut-wrenching.

With a final lick of her lips, Yuka eyed the sickly yellow portal warily. It was as jagged as the rocks it illuminated around it, and big enough for her to fit through if she were twice as large but not much more than that. Where it ended, she had no idea. It could be safety just as easily as a hideout for troops loyal to the man she just killed, that she remembered as General Lee – one of Metaria's Dark Moon Generals before Beryl came with her four Terran ones.

Her enhanced ears suddenly caught sound of shuffling and inhuman grunts just outside the crevice. A pod of demons had caught wind of her fight. Her eyes narrowed as her thoughts whirled. She could remain here, where she would endlessly spend her days fighting for her life and most likely one day be struck down, or she could risk her end now by jumping through that portal. However, the latter came with a chance of safety.

She made her decision just as the portal began shrinking - the one who had opened it was dead now. Taking a deep breath, she placed her trust in the sickly yellow light and… pounced.

XxX

The Outer Senshi were all already there, Ami had found out as she, Usagi, Makoto, and Minako arrived at Rei's temple. They had just reached the steps when Rei met them, wearing her _miko _clothing. It was odd that the Outers might be there first, but it didn't mean anything in particular.

The day had been going fairly typical for them so far, Minako and Makoto chatting about boys whom they never even got the names of, Rei formal and polite with everyone but Usagi, likely to stir up one of their many arguments. She herself kept quiet, watching it all with a small smile and just observing. And it was because of that that she noticed what was wrong.

Usagi... just didn't seem right this morning. Something about her expression, the lack of smiles and usual jubilation. Oh, she had still produced smiles in abundance at appropriate moments, yet Usagi had done nothing to... stand out, if that was the right way to phrase it. Ami didn't know. Just, something seemed off about her, more introverted.

Even now, several of Rei's quips would have set Usagi into a mood and they'd be in one of their amusing disagreements. Instead, it was like Usagi was showing maturity by not rising to the bait. By the time the group had reached the top steps, Rei had noticed the difference in Usagi as well.

"Oi, Meatball-head, you feeling alright today?" Rei asked, a concerned frown on her face.

Usagi smiled tightly, "I'm fine, thanks for..." She stopped, eyes set ahead of her.

Ami had noticed as well, and one by one so did the others. There, before them, instead of empty shrine grounds, were the four Outers transformed into their Senshi forms, standing in a protective ring. They were all facing inward, towards what appeared to be a portal, a dull and greenish yellow in color with sharp, disorganized edges.

Ami didn't like the look of this. She reached into her bag and recovered the Mercury Computer, starting the age old technology up. The others were preparing to transform. That was when things went wrong.

With a flash of light, something leaped out of the portal, directly over Sailor Uranus's head, and the portal snapped shut behind it. The Outers spun towards the unknown entity, all on guard, ready to fight. Ami's computer finished it's recording.

She blinked at the screen in surprise, then shook her head and shouted out her warning, "It was a portal to the Negaverse! That's a _Youma_, one of Queen Metaria's stragglers!"

The _Youma_ was made in the image of a cat, and like all _Youma_ it came with a female humanoid shape. Silvery fur covered her, though marred with grim, blood, and scars, and over that were tattered rags that would not at all be acceptable in public on a normal human. It's hands were human-like, albeit furred, with bloodied and curved claws protruding from her knuckles like that one American comic superhero. Two tails twitched behind her violently, short haired rather than fluffy, reminiscent to the old folktale of the Nekomata. The eyes were purple, with slitted pupils, and wide as if with fear or rage. Three pairs of whiskers adorned either side of it's face, and at the center was a heart-shaped nose. The ears were at the top of it's head, though the left had a notch torn out of the tip compared to the right's rounded triangle.

The Outers had heard her warning, and Uranus and Neptune prepared their attacks. The _Youma_ whirled towards them and appeared to notice what they were trying, since it suddenly cried out in shock and began scrambling back.

Ami noticed that Usagi had frozen next to her, eyes glued on this _Youma_. She couldn't think of why, though. Queen Metaria's _Youma_ had become laughable, power-wise, after the years of battles against their various enemies, especially following the events with Sailor Galaxia. Still, Ami ignored her for now and focused on the upcoming battle.

The _Youma_ dodged the two Outers' attacks, and it ended in a position where it wouldn't be able to counterattack in time. Saturn was holding back for now, which was smart considering that she might accidentally level some buildings with her power. Pluto, however, seemed in a similar state as Usagi, for whatever reason. The most enigmatic Senshi stood there with narrowed eyes, thinking about something furiously.

The _Youma_ dodged again, and this time spun with surprising reflexes to see Jupiter and Mars joining in on the assault and dodge those attacks too. It was quick, Ami would give it that. It was time she herself transformed, she figured. "Come on, Usagi-chan. Let's help them out." She pulled out her Henshin Rod, then started up the transformation sequence.

Ami, now Sailor Mercury, finished to see four attacks coming towards the cat _Youma_ simultaneously, leaving it no room left to dodge. It seemed to realize that too, wide purple eyes lowering as it's stance deflated in surrender.

The attacks hit, and a small dust cloud followed the explosion. The _Youma_ was officially vaporized, but Mercury ran a scan just to be sure. The Sailor Scouts remained wary, tensed in case there was any funny business. They had all improved over the years, Mercury noted to herself. Her computer beeped once the scan finished, and she gave it only a quick glance, knowing what it would say.

Mercury performed a sudden double take. _"Youma_ is not down! Two life forms detected, the second of considerable power! Be on your guard!" she shouted, almost unable to believe her eyes. She looked from the screen to where the attacks had hit.

The dust cleared enough to see the result, as well as whom had saved the _Youma._ It was a man of considerable height for Japan, over six feet tall. He wore a white bodysuit, from feet to neck, and over that were solid plates of armor covering key places. The plates appeared heavy, yet the man carried himself with a sense of ease and strength. His eyes were a sapphire blue, narrowed as he eyed the Sailor Scouts around him. His black hair was tied back into a pigtail, down to the middle of his back. He was quite handsome, in a roguish way, but what was most noticeable about him was the scythe in his hands, green and silver with a black blade.

Handsome, strong, and evil-looking. Yet another bad guy that would have Minako and Makoto whining for days to come.

The new comer had his scythe planted into the ground as he stood between the Senshi and the _Youma_. He smirked suddenly, yet there was a hard and serious edge to it that was not at all comforting. "I found you."

The _Youma_ looked up at its surprising savior, and it's jaw dropped in surprise. It gaped for only a moment before suddenly springing up off the ground and tackling him, though the gesture seemed more affectionate than one of attack. Who was this man, to invoke that kind of response from a _Youma?_

He held his ground against the barreling, sending the creature a small smile of genuine happiness. It began speaking to him, words coming in a low and fast gibbering. He seemed to understand it clearly enough, nodded at times, and then wrapped an arm around it.

"Who are you?" someone finally grew bold enough to ask. Ami saw it was Uranus, sending the mysterious man a challenging stare.

The man drew himself up at the question, meeting her gaze confidently. "I am the Soldier of Chaos, Senshi Nemesis."

He didn't shout it, but the words had the same effect as if he had. Everyone flinched, and many of them grew troubled looks. As well they should. Two words in that sentence flew up red flags. Chaos's whereabouts was still unknown after the battle with Galaxia, and Nemesis was the planet of their enemies the Black Moon Clan.

Needless, the more hotheaded of their group responded to that accordingly. _"SPACE SWORD BLASTER!"_

"_MARS FLAME SNIPER!"_

The man rolled his eyes, of all things. "Green as they come. Come on, let's get out of here for now."

Before the attack sequences had finished and the spells could reach where he had been standing, this Senshi Nemesis scooped up the _Youma_ in his arms and took a leap away from the shrine. Like that, he slipped away.

The Sailor Scouts looked at each other in wide-eyed confusion, still tensed and wary of sudden attacks. Even in her own anxiety, Ami noticed the way Usagi and Sailor Pluto were looking at each other, wide-eyed as the rest yet after a few moments they both were exchanging small, secretive smiles.

Usagi broke her gaze first to gather the attention of all the Scouts. "Everyone, detransform. We are safe, I assure you. We need to talk." There was no insecure, fumbling Bunny there - only the same serious, _mature_ Usagi whom had been walking up those stairs just moments ago.

Sailor Pluto was first to follow the command, turning back into a casually clothed Setsuna, and with those two certain of their safety, the others followed suit. Then, they all headed into their usual meeting place, heads buzzing with questions.

As Ami stepped into the room, one though flitted across her mind. _I wonder how come Rei's grandfather never notices these things happening right in front of him._

XxX

"Alright, who was that?" Rei asked as soon as everyone was settled, a tension obvious in her as she kneeled.

Crystal looked to Setsuna, who nodded once. The green haired woman brought attention to herself. "That was the Senshi of Nemesis, as he mentioned."

"Is he an enemy?" Minako asked.

Some considered that a foolish question, like Haruka, who snorted. "Of course he-"

"He _was_ an enemy, once," Setsuna answered as if Haruka hadn't been speaking. Her reply surprised them. "Not anymore."

There was a confused silence as everyone stared at her, expecting her to explain. Setsuna only smiled mysteriously.

Ami sighed to herself. "So why haven't we heard of him before?"

That appeared to be just the question Setsuna was waiting for. "The day before yesterday, there was an interference in the time streams. Someone, through means other than the Time Gates, transcended the boundaries and managed to send themselves far into the past, specifically twenty-five years before the fall of the Moon Kingdom. While there, this man made significant changes in the order of how the Moon Kingdom's downfall came about, some of those changes massive enough to carry over effects to the present day."

"This man, I'm guessing it's Senshi Nemesis," Rei offered, and then scoffed at the surprised looks she was given. "That's usually how these things work out."

Setsuna smiled at her and nodded. "Yes, his name was Saotome, Ranma before he managed to get himself sent into the past. When he got there, he found a new family, and his named changed to Uzuki-Saotome, Ranma. He was born again on Nemesis."

"Nemesis?" someone asked. "I thought no one had discovered that until Crystal Tokyo."

"A different Nemesis," Setsuna clarified, growing distant for a moment. "The Black Moon Clan named their planet after it, in 'honor' of the planet that once rebelled openly against the Moon Kingdom. Nemesis was originally the fifth planet from the sun, between Mars and Jupiter. What you know as the asteroid belt is the remains of this planet."

Makoto frowned. "What happened to it?"

"The threat of Queen Metaria and the Dark Moon Kingdom caused them to end their rebellion and ally themselves with the Moon Kingdom. However, before the war actually began, its Senshi was killed, and Ranma inherited the position. He pledged himself to Queen Serenity, and then became the trainer for all of you, before your reincarnation. In the end, however, his help proved to be insufficient, and still the Moon Kingdom fell. He gave up his life in a suicide attack against his own planet when it was in the process of being overrun by the last of Metaria's forces."

That gave everyone there pause. The heroism of the deed was nothing to scoff at, but for him to have destroyed the planet... That was something that rivaled Hotaru's destructive abilities, which meant that he was packing similar power – or at least similar potential.

"You said that this Ranma used to be an enemy," Ami reminded. "What did you mean by that?"

Setsuna hesitated for a moment, looking over at the disguised Crystal, but the former Queen only broke eye contact with her. Steeling herself, Setsuna explained the darker part of the temporal interloper, "Ranma had been following the apprenticeship of the Senshi Nemesis before him, a man named Kotetsu, Ryu. That involved a visit to all the planets in this solar system, as well as meetings and tutorship with the other Senshi.

"While on Saturn with his tutoring under Senshi Saturn, there was an attack, and he was captured as a result. No one knew his whereabouts after that, not even his master. For years no one saw him. He finally reappeared on the Moon, outside the Lunar Palace, bearing the insignia of the Dark Moon."

Everyone blinked up at her, and Setsuna hesitated again. Shaking her head, she continued, "He led a siege against the Lunar Palace, by himself, intending to assassinate the Queen. In his assault, he was near unstoppable, killing over two hundred guards before the current Senshi Nemesis confronted him. Ranma defeated his former master in single combat. The Inner Guard Senshi were on their home worlds at the time, but Queen Serenity managed to subdue him shortly after, before his rampage could spread further."

Setsuna took a deep breath, checking with Crystal again before finishing, "Ranma faced trial for his actions, the penalty execution. However, in his case, it was revealed he had been tortured for years under the Dark Moon Kingdom, had his mind broken, and had been warped to believe the Dark Moon was in fact his rescuer. His actions against the Moon Kingdom were those of a soldier following orders, and eventually he was pardoned under the severe judgment of Queen Serenity, agreeing to pledge himself to her and give all known Dark Moon secrets, as well as train her Senshi to best counter the approaching Dark Moon threat."

"That's horrible," Minako gasped after Setsuna finished speaking, "everything that happened to him."

Ami and the others were still mulling the story over, but Hotaru raised her hand suddenly. The girl had a light blush on her cheeks as she asked in a small voice, "I was just wandering if there had been any romantic interests between Ranma and..." Her blush darkened to where her whole face was red, and she said the last word near a whisper, "Saturn."

Hotaru, after hearing the story, was sure about it. Her dream-man was _not_ just a dream-man, but an actual memory from the Moon Kingdom. While she hadn't heard his name there, she was certain that he was this Ranma. And... Well, while they hadn't done anything yet in her dreams, a girl could hope.

She felt her hopes dash when Setsuna let out a light laugh. "No, Ranma had never attached himself to anyone in particular, though he was the heartthrob of the palace during his stay." Setsuna eyed her for a moment, then said, "However, you and him were quite close when he lived on Saturn, before his capture, and that friendship seemed to continue after he returned."

"So you're saying this Ranma guy used to work for the Dark Moon, and yet you trusted him to be an ally after everything he'd done? What if he had turned against the Queen the first moment he was free?" Haruka asked, arms crossed with Michiru leaning against her on her left.

Setsuna reflected the question as she glanced towards Queen Serenity again. The woman still hadn't revealed herself, so it was up to her to answer the best she could. She understood her Queen's reluctance, but the truth would have to come out eventually.

"Ranma was... a man of great honor. If he gave his word about something, he'd fulfill it. Even working for the Dark Moon, what he did was for the greater good. The Dark Moon had used that, constructing illusions about the Moon Kingdom to turn him against it. After his trial, Ranma was given the chance to redeem himself, but he refused it, willing to take death over betraying the Dark Moon. It took old friends, Queen Serenity herself, and finally his old master's last words to finally break those illusions. He found out how he was used, how the Dark Moon had betrayed and manipulated him."

Setsuna gave a little shrug. "It could have been a ruse, but if so a very convincing one. He turned his back on the Dark Moon and pledged himself to Queen Serenity, and from his old master she knew she could trust him on it. Finally, however, he became the next Senshi of Nemesis immediately following the decision, which couldn't have happened if he wasn't pure of heart."

Hearing that sparked a curiosity in Makoto. She remembered the handsome man who had confronted them moments ago, and now she heard his heroic yet tragic past. Could you say potential boyfriend? "What was he like?" she asked, a smile on her lips. "After pledging to Queen Serenity, I mean."

Setsuna's crimson eyes swept to her, and Makoto had the eerie feeling that the older woman had seen right into the heart of her question, which was just creepy. "He was crude, violent, irritating, stubborn to the point of impossible, and had the finesse of a caveman."

"In other words, I'm a diplomat," a voice mentioned, from above them. Every head in the room snapped up, and what they saw stunned them.

It was Ranma, dressed the same they had seen him in outside. His scythe was holstered on his back, and he had his arms folded behind his head, a lazy grin on his face. His body was in the perfect reclining position, legs crossed causally... if it weren't for the fact he was currently residing on the ceiling, looking down at them in amusement as they gaped.

He loved dramatic appearances.

There was a long moment of silence as everyone stared up at him, before Setsuna finally turned her stare away to shake her head, a smile on her lips. The next to move was Ami, who only blinked at him. The silence stretched on.

Finally, Ami lifted her finger to point at him, and she stated quite bluntly, "You're on the ceiling."

Ranma recognized her as the Senshi of Mercury, and it gave him great pleasure to see her utterly flabbergasted like this. "Yes." He dropped suddenly, at the very last second tensing his body and landing smoothly in the center of the room. "Hello everyone."

Haruka had enough, the shock wearing off enough to move. She jumped up, eyes still wide. "What the hell are you doing here? How the hell were you on the ceiling?"

"I the hell am here to find you all. And I the hell was on the ceiling because of magic," he deadpanned, crossing his arms.

"Smartass," Setsuna mumbled, and he shot a grin at her.

"I live to please." He gave a half-shrug. "And I'm in a good mood. Bite me."

Setsuna arched an eyebrow at him. "Maybe later. What gave us away?"

Everyone was in a stunned silence. Hearing of a tenth Senshi was one thing, and though his appearance was sudden, it was acceptable, but hearing _Setsuna_ respond to him so freely was a shock in itself. The woman had always been a tad distant from them, even those she lived with like Haruka and Michiru, and after all their time together, her moments of openness were rare.

This was one of those times, with a man none of them ever remembered meeting.

Ranma nodded back towards the door. "Portal Yuka came through. I was searching for magic, followed it here." He shook his head then. "Horrified at what I found, though. Bad enough the lot of you tried vaporizing the poor girl, but your form as you tried it... Ugh. Back to the flashing lights and long incantation stage, it appears."

He cast a hard eye on the girls, some still gaping, others just swept in the sudden flow of things. His gaze lingered heavily on Usagi, though it moved on before questions could be raised. He sighed once and squared himself. "Young girls, about as bad as could be expected. Still a few years off of twenty, too." He clicked his teeth. "Due to the lack of war, panic, and death in the general area, I know Metaria hasn't started breaking out yet, so that gives us some time. Time enough? Probably not, but that never stopped me before. We'll start the training tomorrow, triple sessions, and if you thought I worked you hard before, you're in for a rude awakening. And don't think age will help you any, I won't hold back."

Setsuna's eyes had widened, while some of the girls blinked at him in confusion. "Ranma, you don't know that-"

He held up his hand, halting her, while his gaze returned to Usagi. "Before we get to that, I need to know why you're under glamor. And where's your daughter? Her and her lover seem unaccounted for."

Setsuna's mouth closed, and she cast a tense glance towards her Queen. The woman had obviously been waiting for some way to break the news as softly as possible, but Ranma blundered that quite nicely. A fine mess they found themselves in so suddenly. Ranma didn't know that Metaria was already beaten, either. Mamoru's absence seemed irrelevant for the moment, but that would sticky things in due time.

Crystal muttered a small curse in her mind, then sighed outwardly. She addressed her response to everyone else. "Setsuna mentioned that some of the changes Ranma made in the past had carried over to present day... This is one of them."

Ami bit her lip. She had her suspicions that she was reluctant to find the answer to. "You aren't Usagi, are you?"

"In part, I am," Crystal hesitated over, then just simply dropped her disguise, reverting back into her true self – albeit a mere seventeen years old version of herself. "But in most, I am not. I am her mother, Crystal Serenity."

In the silence of everyone save Ranma and Setsuna rocking back in shock, Setsuna muttered to Ranma, "We defeated Metaria nearly three years ago."

This was all followed with a ground-shaking, "WHAT?"

XxX

_Years of fear, years of tension. No matter how much I wanted to relax and live a little, always Metaria was there on my mind, with the war she intended to cause and the power at her disposal to wage it. I willfully joined the losing side, intending to leave the Queen Bitch of the Universe a nasty surprise as she took us into the grave. I trained, I worried, and I gave false smiles with words of hope. I didn't love, either, so concerned with our imminent deaths that the idea seemed an illusion, the very thought of connecting myself with someone laughable._

_And just like that... poof. All the fear, all the worry, the tension, anxiety, restless nights... the source of it all vanished in a single moment. A group of five untrained, middle school girls without a whiff of their memories managed to end what the Moon's armies, myself, the Queen, and eight fully trained and aged Senshi failed so miserably at._

_Sweet mother of fuck._

XxX

"So you're saying that when you tried sending everyone to the future, Ranma reflected his portion back at you," Makoto repeated back to her, but it was already a beaten bush. Crystal had explained the nature of her predicament, and the ramifications of it to Ranma. Her daughter was gone because of his actions, even if taken in ignorance.

Perhaps not exactly gone, Crystal reminded herself. Usagi's memories were within her, a part of herself now, as were Selene's. It gave her a more intimate look into her daughter's lives than any mother should have the right to see, but this way she still lived on, within her.

"Wait, let's go back to the part where a fourteen year old girl beats Queen Metaria in a one-on-one confrontation. That's not getting old anytime soon," Ranma cut in, now seated next to Setsuna and no longer transformed. For the life of him, after hearing that, he couldn't stop smiling. There had been an appropriate measure of disbelief at first, but as Crystal had explained herself to the Senshi, Setsuna had explained the details of Metaria's downfall to him, in addition to their other exploits.

It was just so unreal. It made sense that Metaria was weakened from her imprisonment, cut off from her own armies, and went against the full might of the Ginzuisho channeling magic from the Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Mars all combined, but it didn't make it any more unbelievable. It felt so surreal, that it might be over. The problem was over, for good, and they were all still alive.

"Yes, Ranma, I know you're excited," Crystal said with a tired smile, "But could you please withhold yourself for the moment?" She shared a portion of his excitement, knowing that Metaria was no longer a threat, that justice had been served and her kingdom avenged. It didn't change the fact that her kingdom had been lost, that billions of lives had been cut short on that day, and that her daughter was well and truly gone for good.

The meeting went on for awhile longer, as the Senshi digested that their friend was gone and that in her place had appeared two new allies, one of which the powerful Queen who had before only been a name of the past. Not all of them were too pleased by Ranma's sudden addition either, like Haruka, who still felt a strong sense of distrust towards a former Dark Moon soldier, especially with how he had protected the _Youma_ which everyone else seemed to have forgotten.

Eventually it wound to its conclusion, and uncertain girls arguably too young to be defenders of the world slowly shuffled out of the room, insides wracked with loss, shock, and unease. After Hotaru left, following her two parents while sending one last glance towards Ranma, all that remained inside were Setsuna, Crystal, and Ranma.

Once alone, Queen Serenity wavered on her feet, and her hand came to her head. There was a moment of silence like this, and then she moved her hand away to sigh. Dark purple eyes flickered towards the two still on the couch, both of whom were staring at her. "Sad is the day when girls of such age must experience the loss of a close friend."

Ranma gave her a serious look. "At least they have the time and freedom to mourn the loss. They will live on and the wounds will heal, and her memory will live on inside their hearts and your mind."

"To the bright side for you, Ranma. Though I suppose you are right. After all that we suffered, we finally have peace. There is no sense in bemoaning the cost for that peace. That doesn't make it any easier, however." Crystal shook her head, then collapsed onto a chair and closed her eyes, looking not at all like the queen she was. "There is still the fiance and the family to consider. I can feel Usagi's love for them, the passionate and familiar kind, but I am detached from them. I cannot marry the Earthen Prince, and I cannot tear that family apart with the truth, which would simply be too difficult to accept."

"Crystal..." Ranma tried, but he hesitated.

The silver haired woman opened her eyes suddenly and sat up. "Oh, forgive me. These are not your problems to be burdened with. I should go as well." She stood, and then gave Ranma a warm smile. "It is good to see you alive and well again, Ranma. Know I do not believe you at fault for this. I hope to see you soon. Farewell, Setsuna."

"Goodbye, Serenity-sama," Setsuna returned, with a respectful smile.

Just as Crystal was about to step out, however, Ranma stopped her with a word, "Crystal." She turned to him, expressionless face betraying a certain attentiveness. "You know we are here for you. You can speak with us whenever you wish." Setsuna nodded her agreement.

Crystal flashed them both a smile, nodded her head to them, and left the building, recasting her glamor.

Finally, it was just Ranma and Setsuna. The Time Keeper flipped her viridian hair to one side as she turned to face him, crimson eyes bright as she stared at the reunited Ranma. "Do you have a place of your own yet?"

"Not yet," Ranma said, relaxing further into the couch. "I've been too busy trying to track you all down."

Setsuna waited a beat before suggesting, "We have a spare guest room where I live. It's currently Michiru, Haruka, Hotaru, and myself living there. You are welcome to stay with us for as long as you wish, until you find your own place."

"Hotaru..." Ranma echoed with a smile and a shake of his head. "What are the chances that she would have the same name now as she did 3,000 years ago during the Silver Millennium?" He turned that smile to Setsuna, and their eyes met – ruby to sapphire. "I'd appreciate it, thank you."

Setsuna patted his knee and stood, patting down her curvacious form briefly before offering him a hand. "It's what friends are for. Like Queen Serenity said, it is good to see you alive and well again, Ranma."

"You think you can lift me?" Ranma asked, raising an eyebrow at her. He took her hand, and the woman hauled him to his feet in one motion. Her strength impressed him, and he laughed as the two of them left the building together. "So does this mean you forgive me for keeping you at the Time Gates during the war?" He nodded a greeting to Rei's grandfather as they passed.

Setsuna's elbow crashed into his side just under the ribs unexpectedly, and Ranma went staggering forward, clutching at his side. Setsuna strode past him without missing a beat, and he coughed once behind her retreating form. She was a few paces ahead of him before she finally turned to raise an eyebrow at him, outlined by the sunset and orange sky. "Are you coming or not?"

...Her strength impressed him. Taking a breath, Ranma righted himself – wincing once – and caught up to her, looking out for any more elbows coming towards his unsuspecting side.

XxX

In the end, Setsuna had one more house guest to consider. Upon reaching her home, it was her, Ranma, and another woman that entered.

The third woman stood at a height just under Ranma's male form, with a slender figure. When Ranma had last seen her like this, her long limbs had a gangly look to them. Now, in full bloom of her maturity, she could better be described as willowy and handled herself with the same catlike grace that was now a part of her. Her long, chocolate brown hair hung down to the middle of her back. Her eyes were amethyst purple and shone the like precious stones themselves. A rounded face and small nose completed the assembly.

Her state of dress, however, was quite a different story. She wore only pieces of rags, and not near enough for it to be considered even a little modest. Everywhere around her pale skin shone starkly, and it was only due to the bunching of the rags over her chest and around her waist that she couldn't be called shameful. Even that quick-fix seemed on the verge of breaking apart, bloodied and dirtied pieces of cloth beginning to separate to give a gaudy display of more flesh in places.

The pitifully dressed woman seemed quite oblivious to this, happily clinging to Ranma just under his supporting and protective arm. A wide grin stretched her features, and she seemed on the verge of wild laughter with a sparkle in her eyes.

The woman was Yuka, whom Ranma could consider his closest friend apart from Nemesis herself. They had first met on Jupiter, during his time under the Senshi there, where her rebellious attitude constantly threw her into the mines of the planet. They had been rivals there, for his duration. After he left, more trouble from her left Yuka in a temporary exile – to cool off, like a working vacation. Her transport vessel had been attacked, the crew killed, and her captured.

Yuka had been forced through genetic experiments, some so horrifying she didn't dare recall them. When they finished, she had found herself exactly like how the Senshi had found her early this day. Demonic, some cat and human fusion. Silver fur, claws, cat-like face, twin tails. They had always assumed the transformation was physical, merely some sick fetish of her original captors. The fall of the Moon Kingdom had shown them otherwise, when she had been included in Crystal's spell to banish the demonic and corrupted entities.

After her alterations, she had been in much the same boat as Ranma when he was captured by the Dark Moon. They had escaped together, bonded again. Ultimately, they had been separated, her off to become Queen Serenity's secretary, him off to become Queen Metaria's assassin.

Ranma and her had shared a suffering, and the bonds it forged between them were sturdy, more so when he reunited with her upon his entrance into Serenity's Court. He could afford to be open with her where he couldn't with others, a trait Yuka shared only with Nemesis.

So he had protected her without a moment's hesitation when the Senshi attacked her earlier today, then brought her away to safety. Walking with Setsuna, Yuka had met with him again. Ranma had some experience with how demon magic worked, and after some work he managed to help her cast a patchy glamor over her demonic traits, to appear human as she did now.

Setsuna remembered the unfortunate girl, which was why she hadn't struck at her with the others earlier – trying to get a positive identity that it was in fact Yuka and not just a similar _Youma_. She welcomed the girl into her home as well, and since then Yuka hadn't left the protective circle of Ranma's arm.

"Let me show you where the shower is. When you finish, I'll have some of my clothes ready for you," Setsuna mentioned as she removed her shoes near the door.

The girl shivered in pleasure at the very thought. Real food, shelter, a bed, and now a warm shower and proper clothing. "Marry me."

Setsuna smiled, then turned to Ranma. "You wait here until I get back. I'll give you a quick tour of the place and show you to your room."

Ranma waited in a patient silence, listening to the sounds of those further in the house still oblivious to his and Yuka's presence. Then Setsuna returned and showed him around.

The downstairs of his new home contained a standard kitchen, dining room, a den, a restroom, and the guest room which was now his and Yuka's. Upstairs were Setsuna's room, the room Haruka and Michiru shared (whom he had since found were Uranus and Neptune, respectively), Hotaru's room, a drawing room with a piano, and finally the bathroom Yuka occupied, the sounds of an active shower coming from behind the door.

They had caught Hotaru in the kitchen during the tour, leaving a blushing girl behind after telling her Ranma was to be staying with them. Setsuna left Ranma to settle in as she went to inform the other two residents.

Ranma entered his new room and gave it a quick sweep. Mahogany hardwood floor with walls covered in a a teal and white patterned wallpaper. There was a painted desk of matching color in one side with a swivel chair, and a rolled futon in the corner. The far wall held a small window looking out into the night sky, and to his right was a medium sized closet capable of hanging clothes. His new home.

The bag housing Nemesis was set down as he laid out the futon. He would need new clothes, obviously, since all he owned was what was on his back and in the bag. He was content for now, though.

Ranma retrieved Nemesis and sat down against the wall as her aura of peacefulness filled his being.

"_Well, well, look who finally found his own square of the universe,"_ Nemesis greeted warmly. _"I can scarcely believe that Metaria was truly defeated already. It seems impossible... It is a relief, though. We can actually move on with our lives."_

"Yeah." Ranma had his eyes closed as he held her, the scythe nestled in the crook of his elbow.

"_I have some more things to discuss with you, of course. I will wait until you sleep, so that we don't chance further interruption. In the meantime, know that I will be starting the construction of my new body now. You should tell Setsuna to be expecting it._ _Also, be a dear and send Yuka my best for her return to us. I do enjoy the girl, and obviously recent years have been harsh on her."_

"I will."

There was a companionable silence following that, Ranma just feeding on Nemesis's aura as he organized his thoughts. His arm suddenly flexed outside of his control, nearly hitting him in the face. He blinked down at it and furrowed his eyebrows. "Nemesis?"

"_Sorry, I'm just running a few more experiments with you. I can only do them during contact with you. Involuntary movement wasn't the..."_ She trailed off, and Ranma felt something happen within his arm, an odd clenching that was borderline uncomfortable but felt similar to the earlier flex. Nemesis gave a hum of satisfaction. _"Perfect. Now sensory neurons..."_ Pain built up in his arm, slowly at first but continued until it was nearly unbearable. Ranma bared it, and suddenly it went away without a trace. It was replaced by an odd numbness, then a tingle, finally a liquid ecstasy within his arm that went away too.

"You have no idea how weird this all feels," Ranma commented finally, allowing Nemesis to continue working within him. He trusted her, but it was just unsettling knowing that she was able to influence his body as such. He laid the scythe across his lap, then began to run fingers along the silvery strands.

"_Mmmm,"_ Nemesis moaned in agreement to his touch. _"I'm still just laying the groundwork for the big surprise."_

It didn't take too much longer for Yuka to finally appear, glamored hair still wet from the shower. Setsuna's clothes appeared to fit her well, a simple black tee and dark sweatpants that hung rather low due to her unseen tails.

They spoke for awhile so he could better understand her situation while trapped in the Negaverse and she could hear what happened to him after her banishment, then retired for bed.

Yuka didn't want to sleep alone after her nightmarish experiences, and there was only one futon. He didn't blame her. He had had his fair share of hell before, and there were times he wished that he had someone to hold him at night and protect him from the horrors inside his mind.

It took some maneuvering, but eventually they both settled onto the futon comfortably with Nemesis still in Ranma's hands. He kept the blade away from Yuka as his arm came around her, and the two scarred individuals went to sleep.

XxX

_Ranma was expecting the immediate lucidity as he opened his eyes to the world of Nemesis._

_He was standing on the hill of purple grass, surrounded by the squat trees of dark green and autumn red leaves. The sun beat down a gentle warmth from the light green sky, with the passing breeze pleasant and carrying the simple scent of life and home. The wind rustled the leaves in the trees and sent rippling waves down the low growth of wild grass._

_So beautiful. All gone._

_Nemesis herself sat centered on the hill as she usually did, facing Ranma with a motherly smile. She patted the space next to her, and he didn't hesitate in filling it. "Tomorrow my surprise will be ready for you."_

_He gave her a look, and she returned it with a mischievous smile. Shaking his head, he muttered, "Something to look forward to, I hope."_

_She laughed and touched his arm with her hand. "You will be pleased, I assure you. Now, what I wished to speak with you about. While rather impromptu and sudden, Metaria is dead. That fulfills certain conditions of an earlier conversation."_

_Ah, that. Of course. She would be wanting an answer then. He sighed, beginning to mule over a response for her._

_Nemesis suddenly swung a leg over him, straddling his hips, and one hand pushed his chest back to where he was leaning back on his elbows. Her eyes were half-lidded in a mock annoyance, while her face bore amusement. Like that, she stared down at him, full of things his mind took the time to notice – like how the position made the hem of her dress slide up her thighs and how close she was to him like this._

"_Um... Nemesis?" he gulped, his heart beginning to beat faster._

_A finger over his lips silenced him. "I have tried very hard not to be another Shampoo to you. Never did I try to press you past what you could handle, and I always backed off when you wished. However, you have fumbled around on this subject long enough, so I have decided for you, before you can make up another excuse to delay the matter."_

_She smiled at him. "I am to be your girlfriend. You have no say in this. If we do not work out or you wish instead for someone else, then no harm is done, but we will at least try. At worst, you can use this as a learning experience, a stepping stone for later relationships."_

_She moved her finger away so he could speak, eyes sparkling as she waited for his response. He blinked up at her for a moment, then laughed softly. Why was he not surprised to see her take this approach? He smirked at her. "And if I refused?"_

_Nemesis leaned down so her face was only inches from his, matching his smirk. The breath of her words touched his cheeks. "Perhaps you missed the part where you have no say." And then she kissed him._

XxX

Ranma woke up the next morning smiling. He could feel the warmth inside his chest lingering from the dream with Nemesis. The memory of how her lips felt against his remained with him, and it made him looking forward to the next night where he could see and hold her again. Now, this would be an odd relationship, he realized. Past the fact Nemesis wasn't quite human herself, he couldn't even be with her unless he was asleep. He figured he should have known not to expect any different, with his life.

His quiet laughter caused Yuka to stir against him, still under glamor to appear human. She woke up, and upon realizing where she was, she beamed a bright smile at him and snuggled closer.

Awhile later, both of them got up for the morning. Yuka left for breakfast, while Ranma headed towards the shower.

For whatever reason, Nemesis had asked Ranma to bring her with him. It was the start of her surprise for him, she said. He knew without a doubt that her reason was something very perverted, but she had been genuinely excited for it and she had argued her case very convincingly. With her lips. Damn, but that woman was a good kisser.

He waited until the water was warm, then stepped in still holding the scythe. It helped banish some of the morning chill, and for a few moments he just stood there basking under the water. Then, he opened his eyes and said, "Alright, so what's the surprise?"

Something touched his neck. He went stiff, knowing he couldn't sense any presence in the bathroom besides himself and Nemesis inside the scythe. That something moved in slow circles down his neck to his shoulders like a massage, and he recognized the feel of fingers. His hand came up on his own accord to see what what touching him, and he felt the arm attached to those fingers, slender and soft with smooth skin.

Turning around, Ranma saw what was touching him – _who_ was touching him – and his jaw dropped. Standing there with a coquettish smile and a hand on his shoulder was Nemesis herself. A very equally naked Nemesis. A naked and wet Nemesis.

She opened her mouth. _"Ta da."_ The voice appeared inside his head as usual though, and the woman frowned suddenly. Then she smiled. "There we go." This time, her voice came from her, standing somehow two feet away from him. And still naked.

Ranma blushed and brought his eyes back to her face. "H-How? I thought you said it would take longer to make a new body."

Smirking at his blush, Nemesis stepped closer and brought her arms around him, pressing against his front. Her black eyes danced with mirth, and she planted a short kiss on his lips before resting her head against his chest. "Oh, I haven't even started construction of a body yet."

Embarrassed, aroused, and mostly still confused, Ranma said the first thing that came to mind, "Eh?"

She moved back enough to give him a grin, still pressed against him with all her interesting parts. "Stimulation in the brain, activity in the occipital and temporal lobes, antagonizing the sensory cortex, slight touching in the motor cortex. I'm an illusion. The most elaborate hallucination in all of mankind. All in the power of contact." She gestured towards the scythe in his left hand. His right arm was around her.

He blinked as her words sunk in. "You aren't real?" She had been making him experience sensations earlier, all at the cause of her working inside him, but for her to create enough sensations working together in such a manner as to make a perceptional copy of herself projected for his senses... The work required sounded unthinkable. "How?"

"My kind, as you know dear Avatar, are powerful beyond human imagining. Unlike your idea of power, with raising mountains, parting seas, and the like, our power manifests complexly. I managed an entire planet of three oceans, two hundred seas, eight hundred forest majora, thirty-six thousand forest minora, near one hundred billion humans, every separate species of animal, bug, insect, and microorganisms, the wind and the direction of its every breeze, where each bolt of thunder strikes, and infinite more tasks on my former body. Every time a new life sparked within an egg or womb, I was there to help it along.

"Because of you, my responsibilities have been cleared, but my abilities remain. Managing the stimulations within a human brain to create this illusion is child's play to one with my power." There was no boast in her words or a trace of pride. It was just a listing of her capabilities, simple fact, to better his understanding.

That didn't stop him from being awed to speechlessness. He had always known that about her, but he never fully comprehended it quite like this. It further showed the gap between him, with all his firepower and battle prowess, and her. She was the greater being here.

It also brought attention to the realism of the illusion. He really did feel her body in his arms, her skin as smooth and real as it had been in his dream and back when she had had a real body. She felt wet under his fingertips. Her body was warm. He could her breasts against his chest, nipples too, as well as her stomach and legs below that. She was pressed against his arousal, and even _that_ felt real.

Yet he was holding air.

"Nemesis..." he managed finally, "this is amazing."

She beamed at him. Hell, she made an illusion of herself appear as if beaming, and followed with a voice that only sounded as if it came from her, "And this is only the start of the surprise. The next part comes tonight." Ranma's eyes widened, and she laughed. "Nothing perverted, I swear."

He shook his head at her, a smile on his lips. "Nothing normal for me ever."

Her eyes lit with mirth as she nodded, then her expression turned mischievous, sly grin on her lips. Her next words came suggestively, "Now, let me show you how boyfriends and girlfriends normally share showers. I'll wash your back. Then, you can wash all of me."

XxX

After his long and admittedly pleasant shower, Ranma finally made it to the kitchen.

There was school that day, so there was an awkward whirlwind of activity around him before the most of the house's residents departed. Setsuna took the day off, though, so in a matter of moments all that remained was him, her, and Yuka.

The three of them spoke for a long time, catching up on the happenings since they had all last met – mainly Setsuna describing the Sailor Scouts various exploits. After, however, they spoke of the future and plans for it. Ranma and Yuka especially were still unbalanced by the sudden stability of things, one from the full swing of a war and the other just freed of a hellish world, and at this point nothing seemed certain.

Eventually, Setsuna mentioned school would be getting out soon. Ranma blinked at that, not realize how many hours had passed during their conversation.

"Hotaru will need to be picked up. Normally I would do it on a Monday, but I believe she would enjoy it if you were to meet her. She... appears to be remembering certain things about you from the Moon Kingdom." Setsuna gave Ranma a smile.

"Sure, I'll pick up the squirt." Ranma shook his head then. "It's so weird to see them all so young. I was always the youngest Senshi, besides Hotaru, and even then she had only been a year younger than me. Now they are just kids, and Hotaru herself – still the youngest – looks no older than thirteen at best."

"And yet they have accomplished much, more so than I ever could with all my experience," Setsuna acknowledged, writing on a paper before handing it to him. "This is the name of the school and the address. I'll take Yuka shopping for new clothes in the meanwhile. Would you like new clothes as well?"

Ranma took it and nodded. "Yeah, if it wouldn't be too much trouble. This thing stays clean, but it's all that I have."

Setsuna stood, and Yuka stood with her. "See you when we get back, then. Try to not scare any kids in the meantime, alright?"

Ranma grinned, meeting her smirk. "No promises." He bid her and Yuka goodbye.

He gave the now empty house a curious look for a few moments before finally rising himself. He went to his room, put Nemesis in the large bag, and left with it over his shoulder.

XxX

Ranma watched the passing youngsters idly, looking out for Hotaru's face. A strong man standing at over six feet with unusual clothes and a massive black bag over his shoulder may not have exactly appeared the safest guy around, but in Japan things like that were typically overlooked.

A lot was on Ranma's mind at the moment. The future, mainly, with some thoughts about the present. Being a Senshi was a lifelong occupation, with the grand perk of eternal youth. Unless murdered or the planet destroyed, he would live forever, and he already covered the latter by immortalizing Nemesis within his scythe.

And that, to put it simply, left him with a whole lot of life to live, and nothing in mind on how to live it. There had always been something to strive for, be it the best martial artist with Genma, to become a Senshi with Ryu-sensei, or to fight off the approach of Metaria. For the first time, he was without threat. He was a guardian without anything to guard. He had no purpose.

An excellent way to start off his eternal life, he thought blandly.

He was giving Nemesis a try, at her insistence. That covered the romantic angle of things, though he couldn't even start a family with her until she constructed a new body. If she chose to construct one able to carry life this time. Presently, he couldn't even see her unless he was dreaming. Or willing to allow her to puppeteer herself in his mind with hallucinations, he amended. He laughed again, thinking about how strange his life could be at times.

With his thoughts on Nemesis, he thought about speaking to her again, by just touching the scythe inside the bag, but after a moment he decided against it. He liked her, but he wanted to spend the time alone for the moment, just to think things through a bit.

He knew from earlier discussions with Queen Serenity that the Senshi would all regain their memories when they turned twenty, so there was no real sense in training them until then. They would know more then than he could teach them before then. After they got their memories back, he could work from there.

Until then, he really didn't know what he could do. Get a job, he supposed. Become some normal man, make a life for himself. Ranma mulled the idea over for a moment, then burst out into laughter. Right. Him, normal.

Something would come up, he supposed. Something always did. First the first time, he felt he might be relieved when it did. Perhaps something less 'unavoidable eradication for mankind' this time, but beggars couldn't be choosers.

He spotted Hotaru finally, walking out by herself. She hadn't noticed him yet.

He leaning against the wall next to the gate, so that anyone leaving would have to pass his attention. He wasn't very discrete either, the source of whispers and stares from some of the girls. It didn't take long for Hotaru to finally notice him.

She froze, eyes wide and mouth opening in surprise. Ranma grinned at her and waved casually, leaving the wall to meet up with her. Hotaru's eyes went side to side, looking for something, before she resigned herself and walked to meet him, head bowed and a blush on her cheeks.

Interesting. She had been shy the first time he had met her too, back in the Silver Millennium.

"Hey there," he greeted when he came in distance. She mumbled something back. He raised an eyebrow. "Nice to see you too." He turned to walk with her, leaving the school grounds.

Hotaru was silent the whole time, unwilling to even look at him. Ranma tried to change that. "Setsuna told me you might have remembered some things about me. From the Moon Kingdom, I mean." If anything, her blush seemed to deepen and she began walking a step further from him. He blinked and ran a hand through his hair. What could he do with her?

He should keep talking, he supposed. "When I first met you, you had been crying. Apparently, your predecessor had been killed in some revolt recently, and you were afraid that you would be next since you had become the Senshi. I had promised to protect you, right there." Hotaru glanced at him, revealing the deep purple eyes he had enjoyed so much. He smiled at her. "Heh, crying girls were always my weakness. We became really close friends after that."

He reached over and tussled her hair, getting a groan of protest before she could cover her mouth. He laughed. "You never did like that. I can't believe you have such short hair right now. You always had long hair before."

Hotaru brought her hand to her hair hesitantly, then asked in a small voice, "How did it look?"

There, she said something. It was a start, at least. He reflected the question with a wistful smile. "You were beautiful. Even if you never realized it, the dark and scary 'soldier of destruction' always drew eyes when entering a room."

She was silent for another moment as they walked together, and then she asked, "What was I like?"

"Strong," Ranma said immediately, "and not just magically. You were a strong woman. Your title had always been despised because of the prophecy, but you never let it get you down for long. You could see the bright in everything, always full of this optimism I found contagious when we were younger. I had promised to protect you, but the only thing you had ever needed protection from was loneliness. You never showed it on the outside, but our friendship meant a lot to you, more than you let on."

Ranma rubbed his jaw then, a spark of amusement in his eye. "You had a pretty wicked right hook, too. It took a lot to set you off, but once that happened you could have a pretty vicious streak for vengeance." Hotaru blushed at that, but she had a small grin of her own Ranma was glad to see. "On top of that though, you had a kind heart. That nifty healing ability of yours, you were always quick to help whoever was injured. For an old soldier like me, who's sole purpose has always been to destroy, that speaks a lot about you."

Hotaru's eyes had widened, he noticed, and she seemed in a bout of panic. He blinked at her, but waited for her to speak. "You- you know about my... power?" He nodded, confused. Her voice lowered, "You don't think it's... freakish?"

Ranma's sudden laugh startled her, and he gave her a warm smile to show he meant no harm. "Freakish? I'm the _last_ person who could ever call someone else _freakish."_ He stepped closer to her and gave her a sly look. "Want to hear a secret?" She gave an uncertain nod. "I got my own freakish power, too. See, you can heal people, and that's just cool. Me, if I get splashed with cold water, I get turned into a girl."

Hotaru blinked, and then she laughed at him. "You do not."

He held up a hand. "On my honor, it's true. Ancient Chinese curse."

Hotaru was trying to hide her grin behind her hand as she said, "Prove it."

Looking to the left and right, Ranma ducked into a restaurant and returned holding a cup of water. He handed it to her. "You do the honors."

Hotaru looked down at the cup of water in her hands, and then back at the man next to her. There was no way someone like _him_ could be a girl. It seemed a defiance of nature to turn the image of masculinity into something feminine. Still holding it, she asked, seriously, "Then how do you turn back into a boy?"

"Warm water," Ranma replied, emphasizing the warm part. "Go ahead, just lay it on me."

Biting her lip and still with a doubting smile, Hotaru – like any youngster would – used the free excuse to splash him. To her disbelief, he did change. He actually changed into a she!

Where a mountain of man had been earlier was now the very image of femininity. His black hair was now a bright crimson, and everything below it had changed to match, from the face to _her_ breasts and other curves. The clothes Ranma had chosen obviously were meant to be prepared for this change, and they accommodated the new form well. With only a shifting of the strap of her bag, Ranma beamed a wide grin at Hotaru, no longer as tall as the male form had been.

Hotaru blinked. She blinked again. She nearly stumbled as she just stared at Ranma. Then, she began cracking up. Her giggles couldn't be contained as she held her stomach, laughing at her companion. Ranma blew a red strand of hair from her eyes as she took the laughter with good graces. She was happy to see Hotaru no longer so shy around her.

And that was when her bad day started.

Someone started screaming, coming from the street over from them. Ranma and Hotaru stopped, glancing at each other in confusion. There was an alley next to them, cutting a path towards the noise. Without hesitation, they both started heading towards the source of the screams.

Ranma saw the crowd of people surrounding something, and she shoved a path through them – one hand holding Hotaru's to make sure she wasn't separated – until she reached the center.

It was a woman, holding her head and kneeled on the ground, screaming at the sky above her. The screams weren't normal, either, coming in short, sharp barks of agony. Now that she was closer, Ranma could feel the air thrum in time with each scream, the thrums a dull buzz to her senses. This woman was doing magic.

That unsettled Ranma.

Lucky for her, this woman didn't seem very proficient, but whatever she was doing obviously wasn't very good. Ranma stepped forward and knelt next to her, one arm coming to her back. She didn't know much about verbal magic, but contact could do wonders about telling her the intention behind this spell. She just hoped she didn't go deaf from it.

The moment she came in contact with the woman, the spell completed.

There was a liquid splashing sound, like a bucket of water being poured onto the sidewalk suddenly. At the same time, Ranma's vision blacked out, and she could feel herself get surrounded in a sudden warmth. Actually, she felt her curse triggering too, and Ranma was male again. After the splash sound, there was dead silence.

Something unknown was covering him, and Ranma moved his hands to wipe whatever it was away from his eyes so he could see again. It was chunky and liquidy, whatever it was, which was slightly gross to him. He opened his eyes.

Red. Everything was red. His hands, the ground, the people around him. For a moment, he thought something had gone askew with his vision, but then he saw the blue sky and places people weren't splattered in the crimson. He sniffed, and a wretchedly familiar metallic and putrid scent filled his nose. The scent of blood.

Ranma looked around him. Everyone nearby had been splattered in blood and what appeared to be pieces of gore. That wasn't all though. Above him, over where the woman had been kneeling – there was no sign of her, now – was a portal. Dark green, almost a perfect square but for another rectangle sticking out of the top. Its presence included a soft, innocent hum.

_What the fuck?_ The shock was beginning to fade, and Ranma's mind caught all the little details. His stomach dropped out suddenly, and he had an urge to vomit. The woman... had exploded. That spell had caused her body to splatter everywhere around him, on him. Her innards were covering him. And there was a portal to show for it.

Ranma fought down his urge to retch, and he let the soldier take over. "Everyone get out of here!" His words were sharp, commanding, and everyone turned to look at him. "Now!"

Too late.

Something jumped out of the portal. Something else did too, following the first. A man went down suddenly, screaming into the silence. And then there was panic.

Whatever had just left the portal was now attacking the people. Ranma could see something dark and scaly on top of the screaming man, and with a jerk of its head the man went silent. A barbed tail swung behind it in its excitement. The second creature was entirely different, pig-skin pink and with the shape of a bear with all it's bones broken, lumps and budges under its flesh covering. It's face was a fanged muzzle, four eyes, and on it's back was a mouth with just two rows of broken and jagged teeth. This one was eying the scrambling crowd, taking its time to consider who to go for.

Demons. With a rush of panic and anger, Ranma recognized the two as Demonata. That woman had brought them here to Earth. Hotaru was still in the crowd.

His eyes latched onto the girl immediately, seeing the blood sprinkling her form. She was staring at the demons with wide eyes, too stunned to move. The bear-like one turned its eyes to her, and it growled its approval. It had found its target. Without warning or preamble, it lunged forward, muzzle widening for a quick finish for its first victim.

Hotaru tried to take a step back but ended up slipping, and her mouth opened for an ear-ringing scream. The demon was fast though, claws puncturing the concrete to keep from slipping in the puddles of blood. She was close to it, too, mere feet away from it's initial landing from the portal.

Ranma was faster. His body was there in front of her in nearly an instant, protectively. With a growl of anger, his fist came up and smashed into the demon's muzzle as it descended. There was a satisfying snap as its neck broke, the head twisting entirely to the side before the body followed it and the whole creature slammed into a parked car with enough force to send it skidding several feet into the road.

Accessing the sudden flood of magic in the air, Ranma cleaned the blood off himself and Hotaru, and then took her in his arms and jumped straight up. He landed on the roof of a five story building, and he set down Hotaru gently. She was in shock, crying with her eyes shut. He would be back for her.

Ranma ripped open his bag and removed Nemesis. Her aura of serenity couldn't touch the rage he felt within, and he turned back towards the street. The first demon had moved onto another victim, while the second was already pulling itself out of the car. He stepped off the roof, transforming into his Senshi form as he fell, and hit the ground with enough force to shatter the concrete, all seven hundred pounds easily absorbing the fall.

Demonata, here on Earth. That shouldn't have been possible, not with Metaria defeated.

They had their own universe they were native to, parallel to the human one. Ranma knew they were a hellish race, demons consumed by bloodlust yet with a frightful addition of an intelligence, meaning they weren't at all like mindless beasts. They could aspire for cruelty, lay traps, savor the pain and fear as they slowly butchered prey.

Metaria had summoned over the strongest of them, Demon Masters, who in turn brought their armies of familiar. The only thing that rivaled a Demonata's thirst for blood was their instinct for survival. They submitted to stronger opponents, which was why Demon Masters could gather armies. Metaria had forced Demon Masters to submit to her, one at a time, adding their armies to hers. Ranma knew well how dangerous Demonata could be.

With her banishment, the Demon Masters under Metaria's control had been loosed, free to do as they wished in the human universe. Fortunately, they had all gone after Nemesis first. Ranma had fought, the armies of Nemesis had fought, but there was no way they could have won. Ranma knew he couldn't beat a Demon Master in a fair confrontation, and there had been three of them.

Eris Ascension had taken all the Demonata with him, presumably since there was still an Earth.

The two that were before him were simple underlings. They were deadly, as all Demonata were, but the real trick to them was that they couldn't be killed by physical means. It was why none of the Nerima Wrecking Crew would have been able to help him here. He could spend all day grinding them into paste with his fists and still watch them get back up. Demonata were beings of magic, not flesh, which meant they could only be killed by magic.

Fortunately, his scythe had been magic, even before Nemesis had taken residency within. He also had her magic to work with, as Senshi Nemesis.

The demons prepared to kill more people, people he meant to protect. They had attacked Hotaru, whom he had promised to keep safe. Ranma was pissed. They didn't even belong in this universe.

"_CHAOS BOLT!"_ Ranma shouted, his most basic Senshi attack. A small black orb appeared in either hand, and he threw them at the two demons. In the air, the orbs expanded into basketballs, and they made contact with both demons with heavy impacts. The Demonata roared, both rounding towards him.

Ranma stood there in his Senshi uniform, the white bodysuit with his plates of armor. His scythe was planted into the ground with his left hand, and his right hand came up to gesture the two towards him.

The small, dark one broke into a loping run, all claws, scales, and fangs with a barbed tail. The other spat a glob of green goo towards him, then began advancing. Ranma watched them in contempt.

He sent a reach up into space, into Nemesis's ruins, and he took handfuls of magic from the rocks, ripping it from its source and bringing it into himself. He did that until he was filled to the brim with magic, his whole body tingling with so much energy it almost hurt. He wouldn't need near that much, but he just wasn't feeling very moderate at the moment.

He forced the magic out of him, and he wanted fire. He wanted them to burn, to suffer in a fiery agony before dying. One way of using magic, his way, was intent, and he _got_ fire.

Rather than the usual ball of flame from his hands, an inferno of molten heat poured out of him. The first demon tried changing course, but it's momentum was just too much and it barreled right into its doom. Chittering screeches filled the air as it burned, waves of liquid flame pouring over it and melting it through the scales. The fire was so bright Ranma had to shield his eyes, but he listened to the demon's death sounds with grim satisfaction.

The earlier ball of goo had stood no chance against the molten tide, though the second demon did manage to avoid the inferno. It stood outside the glowing puddle, eyeing Ranma warily. Ranma lowered his hand to give it a challenging glare, and it snorted uneasily. The lumpy, hairless bear eyed the portal.

"Oh, no you don't," Ranma growled. There was no way he would let it go after this. He had magic to spare and the anger enough to waste it. _"FABUKI SOUSOU!"_

There were three ways to make a ki attack stronger. The first was to remove the emotional limiter, leaving the ki pure. The second was to combine it with negative ki. Ranma's master had used the absence of light as an anchor for negative ki, making shadow attacks. Ranma had tried that and failed. While it wasn't near as cool looking, he managed to find his own anchor. The Soul of Ice gave him the idea of the absence of heat, and it attached successfully. He used magic to chill the air around him, fixing the negative ki into the attack. Finally, the third way to make the attack stronger was to empower it with magic, and Ranma pumped Nemesis's magic from himself into the concoction.

The moment he did, frost formed up along both arms, and Ranma unleashed a large orb at the demon. It was white, and it gave off a light mist similar to dry ice. It moved fast, too. The demon tried dodging, but the spell hit its flank. Ranma gave a cold snort. It was over.

First the orb ate into the demon's flesh, tearing it apart in a spray of blood. Then, as it ground its way to a stop, it exploded. It exploded big. An icy shock-wave passed the area, hissing as it passed over the molten puddle and leaving it hardened and steaming. Ranma didn't budge as it passed him, eyes locked on the center of the explosion.

What was left of the demon was expected. Mainly, bloody body parts around a large crater. The fatigue hit Ranma then, and he wavered on his feet. That was his most powerful spell, a fusion of three energies – two of which came from within him – and using it always had its drawbacks. He could fill himself with magic to the brim and go all the way through it several times and feel less tired than a single use of that spell.

His eyes slid over to the portal the demons had used to get here, and he watched as it shrunk steadily before finally disappearing. Already, the magic in the air around him was beginning to fade, bleeding into the earth like water in a desert. He was done here.

Jumping back onto the roof, he recovered Hotaru, cradling her to his chest as she continued crying, and with her he began heading back towards Setsuna's house.

He had wanted something to happen, and he got his wish.

XxX

_Ain't irony a bitch?_

XxX

Setsuna and Yuka were waiting for him back at the house. Hotaru had fallen asleep on the way back, and Ranma didn't dare risk waking her after what she had had to see. He explained what had happened in a quiet voice, about the woman, the portal, and the demons.

"I'm restarting the Senshi's training," he concluded finally, solid resolve in his voice. "Enough to where they can defend against basic Demonata alone."

Setsuna was pensive for a few moments then she asked, "Do you believe we are under threat?"

"I believe something convinced that woman to open that portal, something interested in getting Demonata over to this side. If whoever or whatever it is manages to get a Demon Master over to this side..." Ranma trailed off, but Setsuna nodded her understanding. Demon Armageddon. Doomsday. It would be Nemesis all over again, and without an army capable of fighting them.

"So we have a new foe then," Setsuna assessed.

Ranma frowned, rubbing his eyes with the hand that wasn't holding the sleeping Hotaru. "Maybe. Maybe not. It could just have been a crazy woman getting lucky on a summoning. The point is, I don't want to chance that there might be something behind it that we aren't prepared for. If it is the start of an organized foe, I want to get a lid on it as early as possible. I want my Urgoks back."

"Ranma, how could you possibly get to them?" Yuka asked. "Earth doesn't have the technology to fly to their planet, and none of the Senshi teleportation could get you there."

Ranma grunted acknowledgment. "I know. I need to think of something... Dammit, I could sure use Xycell right now."

The other two stayed silent, thoughtful. Eventually, Setsuna sighed. "We will need to tell the others. Queen Serenity." She gave Ranma a look of exasperated amusement. "I don't know whether to be glad that you are here to help us fight this... or to blame you for being a cause of it."

Ranma smiled back. "What are friends for?" He stood, careful not to jostle Hotaru. The two girls stood with him. "I'll put Hotaru to bed. We should start that training as soon as possible, though."

Ugh, Demonata. Ranma knew these girls had seen cruelty, had fought when lives were on the line, and had overcome fear and desperation to forge paths to victory when all seemed lost. They weren't ready for Demonata, though, not the brutality that they would be facing.

Setsuna stopped him with a hand on his arm before he could leave. "Ranma... Even if you are somehow at fault for this, know that I will always be glad that you are here. I missed you."

Ranma turned a soft smile to her, still cradling Hotaru. "Thanks, Setsuna. It means a lot."

They stared at each other for a moment, her hand still on his arm. It felt like they were waiting for the other to speak, until finally Setsuna smiled and shook her head, giving his arm a little squeeze before letting go. Ranma smiled and brought Hotaru to her room.

Metaria was defeated, yes, but he couldn't even be given a full day of peace before the next threat appeared. Just as well, he supposed; he couldn't stand being bored. He had a new bad guy to find and then kick the ass of. Fairly straightforward and typical. The consequence of failure was the possible destruction of Earth, which was already dying from an unknown cause anyways. Also fairly straightforward and typical.

Just another day for them hero types.

* * *

AN: This chapter has been done for awhile now, though I've been holding off for a bit as I worked ahead. The reason is, this story is proving as difficult to write as expected. I'm constantly writing things and changing them, sliding some scenes back further and moving up others, rewriting conversations and descriptions, giving details of the past and deleting them. I'm far enough ahead now where this chapter shouldn't face anymore changes.

Unfortunately, next chapter will take much longer. Expect a long delay before it finally shows up. Meh, anyways, I hope you enjoy this one, folks. I'll see you in a month or two.

-Sub

_PS, chapter length, 21k._


	4. Gathering Storm

AN: I just want to mention this before I get any complaints at a later date. This story is told in third person, and between scene breaks that can shift from (I forgot the right terms, but like) third person 'omniscient' where it can be in everyone's mind and 'limited' where its restricted to one only. I don't care if it's not proper to use both in a story. I'm just here to have fun, eh?

* * *

Gathering Storm

* * *

Ranma felt a kindling of hope for these girls.

They were untrained, young, immature, unfocused, undisciplined, took too long getting out their spells, and their coordination was worse than it had been back in the Moon Kingdom, when they were each stuck up princesses. They had achieved their final Senshi forms already, though, so their raw power was not lacking.

Silver lining to every cloud. Ranma the optimist.

The Outers still vastly out-powered the Inners – Hotaru and Crystal excluded – but even the weakest of them could kill the average Demonata if their attacks made contact. That meant he only needed to focus on two things: making sure their attacks hit and making sure the Demonata didn't kill them as they tried.

The second was the trickier part. Working together, the girls could manage that against a single demon every time. Alone, against a single demon, the likelihood of that dropped dramatically. Alone against multiple demons, he'd only bet money on Setsuna, Crystal, and Hotaru getting out of it alive, though they each had their chances.

Yuka became his faithful helper for this first session with the so called Sailor Scouts. He used her as a basic example of what the girls would be up against, pitting her against individual Senshi. Yuka lacked potent magical ability, not at all a fair match against the planetary defenders, but her natural grace and experience forged in her time trapped with Metaria's remnant army turned her into a deadly opponent.

Haruka snarled as Yuka's tails tripped her again, slamming her brutally against the hard ground before she rolled to her feet. "Die, demon! _WORLD SHAKING!"_ Apparently, Setsuna had asked Haruka and her lover to play nice with him and Yuka when they moved in. The girl had abided by that – reluctantly – so far, nothing more than awkward silences and dirty looks if they were alone in a room, but out in the field, the blond had all the excuse she needed to put an end to Yuka.

If she had perhaps managed to send the spell instantly, without the drama and glowing, she might have hit Yuka. Instead, the demonic girl easily had the time to dodge and counterattack. The moment she was clear of the golden orb, Yuka rammed her shoulder into Uranus's gut. The woman gasped out a breath, but Yuka left her no time to recover. A backhand staggered the Senshi, and a tail stopped the blond's fist from lashing out. The other tail swept her legs out again.

Yuka went down with her this time, amethyst eyes cold. She ended with a claw poking threateningly at Haruka's unprotected throat, tails binding her arms.

"While certainly not terrible, they are lacking," a voice commented to Ranma's right, speculative. "What are your thoughts?"

"That you are without clothes," Ranma said, eyes not straying from the fight. Uranus didn't trust Yuka, which was reasonable, but she couldn't deny that Yuka could kill her right now yet wasn't. She struggled fitfully, to no avail.

Nemesis looked down at her self and gave an exaggerated blink. "Would you look at that." She snapped her fingers, and her usual dress of light green was covering her. She leaned against Ranma, his arm coming around her idly. "Must I repeat the question?"

"They aren't as good as their past selves, obviously. Could be worse, though. And most Demonata aren't as fast as Yuka, either. Once they start getting their spells out instantly, they'll be mostly alright." Ranma wanted to relax against Nemesis, but he figured he would only end up stumbling if he tried, the illusion that she was. He remained steady, scythe planted against the ground in his left hand.

"Ranma, to whom are you speaking?" Crystal asked to his left, staring quizzically at him.

Nemesis raised an eyebrow at him with a smile, waiting for his response. Ranma only waved a dismissive hand at the former queen. "My imaginary girlfriend. Don't mind me." Crystal blinked. "Alright, next up. Neptune, see if you can do better."

Yuka released Haruka, and the blond cautiously got away from her. She seemed of a mind to attack again, until she got another look at the demonic girl's slitted eyes. She shuddered and decided against it. Michiru stepped up.

It was more of the same, really. However, the girl had thought things through and kept distance between her and Yuka. It wasn't enough in the end, though. Yuka shouldn't be able to beat the Senshi in a knock out fight, not with the extra toughness their forms granted them, but the "claws to throat" plan seemed to work well for her after some scuffling.

As Neptune was replaced by Setsuna, Ranma took the time to study Yuka's scars. The poor girl. She had fur, but thick grey lines were visible under it, cataloging her past injuries. She had so many of those. Years of survival, fighting against Metaria's remaining forces. The time made her damn skilled. Even with their inexperience, the current Senshi were no pushovers. Yuka combated that with skill, speed, and grace, and so far she had come on top.

It reminded him of himself, when he was younger. Always going against stronger opponents, always managing to claw his way to victory through his skill and perhaps a stroke of luck. But then the time always came when there was just that opponent you couldn't beat, no matter how hard you tried.

Setsuna became that opponent to Yuka.

The Senshi of Pluto demonstrated instant attacks of magic. She snapped out a Dead Scream with just the phrase, and Yuka only dodged by the skin of her teeth. Several follow ups had Yuka dancing wildly, widening the space between them. Normally that would be a bad choice against Setsuna, given her tendency to teleport during fights.

For whatever reason, Setsuna refrained from the teleportation, and she twirled her key into a stance Ranma wasn't familiar with. That was good, at least. It meant she had continued learning on her own. Yuka recognized the challenge, and she came back in cautiously.

There was no fight there, really. Yuka was fast, nimble, and she knew what she was doing. Setsuna was faster and more skilled, and after several exchanges between her staff and Yuka, the catgirl called quits – likely with some bruises to nurse.

That was something, at least. Setsuna could probably challenge him to a weapons duel fairly evenly, now.

The assessment was over. After a few more words, Nemesis parted peacefully, illusion vanishing the instant his scythe returned back into the black bag. He slung that over his shoulder, walking over to speak with the Senshi.

"Fairly pathetic," Ranma stated first and foremost. "Except for you of course, Setsuna. The rest of you, the most of your problems could be solved if you would just send your attacks faster. Ame- Mars, whatever the hell your name is now, that means no more _chanting_. The rest of you, stop with the lights and the dramatic build up. Your attacks are spells, the incantations limited to just you. Have the energy ready, and then release it. If you can't figure out how, I'll give you some tips tomorrow.

"For now, think about how you all did against Yuka. Yes, you could beat her if you worked together, but you can't be so reliant on others. The time will come when you'll find yourself in a fight alone, and I want you ready for it." Ranma gave a nod to Queen Serenity. "I want to see you in action too, but obviously we are going to need more space for that. All of you, same time tomorrow, we'll meet back here."

He turned from them, beginning to walk away with thoughts tumbling details of the assessment over. He couldn't push these girls the same way he had pushed their past selves. Those had been soldiers, most of them over a century old – some of them several. He needed a gentler hand here.

Yuka pulled the glamor back over herself, appearing human again with her pants hanging almost indecently low, and she caught up to him quickly. "You certainly know how to have a presence."

Ranma smiled slightly at her as they fell out of earshot of the Senshi. "You did good out there."

Yuka smiled at the praise, but she shook her head. "I'm not a non-combatant anymore. I can help kill Demonata."

"I know you can," Ranma said, very near a sigh. Yuka wasn't supposed to be a fighter. She wasn't a Senshi, wasn't a guard. She had been the Queen's secretary. Yet, he could use whatever help he got. He could use Yuka. The thought disturbed him, but he would do what he had to, for the greater good. What a load of bull. "Yuka, I-"

"Ranma!" a voice called, unhurried. Ranma turned to see Setsuna approaching them, and he smiled slightly at her.

Yuka looked at him, then at Setsuna, then at his smile, then back to Setsuna. She turned a small grin at him. "Oh, I see. I'll catch up with you later, Ranma-kun. Have yourself a good time." She nudged him with a wink.

"See ya, Yuka-chan," Ranma muttered back, nearly blushing at her implication. It wasn't like that. He had Nemesis, after all. Yuka parted with him as Setsuna reached them, nodding to the green haired Senshi.

Setsuna smiled back at Yuka before turning that to Ranma. They began walking again, leaving the construction site that had been their area of practice. She was already transformed back as her civilian self, the lavender business suit from the school replacing her Senshi _fuku._

"Cool, distant, and only a few words before leaving. Careful, Ranma, I already hold the place of the most enigmatic Senshi," Setsuna remarked.

Ranma smirked. "I have the whole dark yet redeemed background that girls that age seem to find attractive going for me too." He waited a beat before saying, "Glad to see you haven't lost your touch. I feel better knowing at least four of us are able to handle some demons if no one else is nearby."

"They do handle much better when lives are actually on the line, I've noticed," Setsuna offered.

They reached a crowded street, shops crammed together on either side. Setsuna stepped closer to him as they began making their way through.

Passing a particular store Setsuna had barely glanced at, Ranma asked offhand, "You still interested in being a fashion designer?"

Setsuna's eyebrows rose briefly. "How did you know about that?"

"Come on, I went into your quarters perhaps only twice, and both times your desk was covered in open notebooks about it. Wasn't that hard."

Smiling slightly, Setsuna shook her head. "A shame those books were lost when Queen Metaria destroyed the palace. My best ideas were in there, and I have forgotten them since." Ranma glanced at her, waiting. She sighed in amused exasperation. "Yes, I'm still interested. However, I have since put the pursuit on hold."

The flow of people against them thickened, and Setsuna ended up holding onto Ranma's arm to avoid it. People stepped around _him_ easy enough. She noticed it was his right arm, circular scars riddling the bicep. It was healthy and strong now, like his left, and she found herself admiring it with her hands.

"Are you still mad at me?" she asked as a finger traced one of his scars.

Ranma met her eyes for a moment, red to blue, then turned back to the tide of people. "I couldn't be mad at you. Annoyed, sure, but not angry. Anyways, no, I'm not. It needed to be done."

The arm used to be paralyzed, during the Moon Kingdom. The injury could easily have been fixed, through the Ginzuisho, Nemesis, or even magic if he tried hard enough. The disability meant something to him, though, a reminder of Metaria and what she had done to him. Despite the insistence of Queen Serenity and Nemesis both, he had stubbornly refused healing.

When he had been brought back to this life, Setsuna had restored it against his will. He wasn't happy she did it, but after a bit of sulking, he acknowledged it needed to be done. He had just been too stubborn to allow it.

Ranma noticed Setsuna was now leaning against him as they walked. He didn't raise comment about it, even as they cleared the street and the people around them thinned.

She asked him suddenly, "Would you like to go somewhere for dinner tonight?"

Ranma barked a laugh. "You're asking to eat with me?" That wasn't too rare between them. However, back then the usual Saotome gusto was covered by Queen Serenity's hospitality.

Setsuna had a matching smile. "You would pay, of course. Or, while they are rare in Japan, I know of a buffet or two you might enjoy."

"Well, when you put it that way, I'd love to." Ranma smirked at her and said, "Besides, I need to make sure my modest little princess is still eating healthy."

Setsuna laughed. "No one eats as 'healthy' as you, of course." She leaned her head against his arm, knowing full well how the two of them looked to an outsider. She couldn't care less though.

It felt like they were back at Lunar Palace, as if 3,000 years hadn't gone by with them apart. Which was true for him, technically. His familiarity and comfort was spreading to her too, and against her will she found herself lowering the time-withered walls to open up with him again.

XxX

The girls were talking after Ranma and Setsuna left. Crystal noticed how she was excluded from the discussion. However, while she may not be able to give them their friend back, she could at least open the possibility of friendship with herself. "Would any of you perhaps wish to join me for some ice cream? I was hoping we could speak some."

Seven pairs of eyes moved to her, wary. Crystal had never held stock in the power of being judged by peers, but in that moment she did understand it. It was Ami who softened her expression first. "I wouldn't mind getting to know you more. I'll come." The others followed suit, some reluctantly.

At the parlor, Crystal's ice cream became the source of her attention, the savory sweetness simply marvelous. Curse her daughter for giving her such a liking for unhealthy treats. They were _so _good_._

The others had joined her at the table, making a small crowd. There was a few moments of silence before Haruka asked, "So you are really Queen Serenity?"

Crystal lifted her gaze to meet the blond's. She smiled softly and nodded. "I am." She took another bite before saying, "Do forgive Ranma for the lesson he gave today. He can come as harsh, though he does mean the best. He doesn't want any false ideas of your skill now and what it will need to be." She carefully left out that what he had done today was significantly kinder than any lesson he had given before. No one was rendered unconscious, for starters.

"Serenity-sama, how old are you?" Ami asked carefully, a measure of politeness in her tone.

Crystal waved a hand at her. "Call me Crystal, please. I will be 326 as of next month, on the fourteenth." They seemed surprised at that, and she laughed. "Believe it or not, most of you were older than me. Rei, you had been around since the first Queen Serenity. You, my husband, and Makoto were the eldest of the Senshi. The rest of you, save Hotaru and Setsuna, had come into power around Queen Serenity II's reign."

"Ooh, your husband?" Minako piped. "Who was he? What was he like?"

Crystal leaned back in her seat and smiled fondly, recalling the man. "Strong, handsome, kind. A man who countered his own idealism with rationalism. He was brave, selfless, and passionate. Full of life. Officially, he was an insurrectionist though, so he worked with me only in secrecy, and my marriage to him was never made public. He was Kotetsu, Ryu, Ranma's _sensei_ and the Senshi of Nemesis before the war with Metaria."

"What happened to him?" someone asked softly. But they had mostly figured it out from Setsuna story two days ago.

"When Ranma sieged the Lunar Palace, he went out alone to face him. They fought, Ranma won." Crystal closed her eyes, the image fresh in her mind. Screaming, panic. The guards nervous at their posts. The whole palace quaking from the fighting going on outside her walls. There was no stopping that one man. He would slaughter a path right to her.

Then there was Ryu, smiling at her as he began to head out to face Ranma. Crystal had begged and pleaded he stay, but he had his duty. He left.

"Ranma didn't kill him, though," Crystal brought up, fighting to keep emotion from her voice. "The blow he struck was only to incapacitate. It was a rare poison that finished him, called Black Blood, caused by the metal of Ranma's weapon – similar to lead poisoning. Only Nemesisians could contract it, and it just so happened my Ryu was susceptible."

"How could you..." Makoto started, then swallowed. "How could you stand keeping Ranma around after that? He is practically the murderer of your husband."

_Crystal screamed. The sight of her husband's blood splattered over Ranma's form infuriated her. The Ginzuisho reacted to her anger, filling her with power. Righteous hatred burned through her, tears spilling from her eyes and blurring her vision. She lifted the ancient weapon, channeled its power. She unleashed her hatred, her rage, her power, all into an unavoidable wall of raw magic._

_Ranma tried to escape it, but Crystal's had none of that. It hit, and Ranma flew back into the palace wall. The magic ground him into it, splintering the wall. Blood left Ranma's mouth, and he fell to the ground. He stirred, and Crystal's fury lashed out again. He started to stand, and a new wave of power slammed him into the wall just as brutally._

_Broken and bloodied, Ranma lost consciousness._

Crystal took a slow, calming breath. The age old method allowed her to keep her emotions a slow smoldering deep down within her, away from her mind and voice. "He was more useful to me alive than dead. Ryu's excitement for the boy over the years had left me biased, and once I understood what had changed the promising boy my husband went on about into this cold killer, it was difficult to hold onto that anger. I pitied young Ranma. He then gave me reason to trust him, and he pledged himself to me." She had put her kingdom before herself when it came to Ranma's fate, as she always had.

"What do you think of Ranma now?" Ami asked.

Crystal actually smiled at them. "He is my friend, something rarer than you may think for a queen. I watched him devote two years of his life into training you, the elite soldiers of a kingdom he opposed. I watched him risk his life to save yours during the war, and although he failed in all accounts, it wasn't for lack of anything. There was only one of him, and after he would save a planet, the moment he left to save another something else would destroy it behind him. We were stretched too thin."

She shook her head. "Outside of training, though, he was a good man. He made things around the palace... interesting, to say the least."

Rei gave a friendly grin. "Got any good stories?"

"Indeed I do," the former queen grinned back. "You see, opposed to how the Moon Kingdom has been presented to you, it had many problems from within, rooting back to Queen Serenity II's reign. Sexism, mainly, where men were reduced to the point of almost slavery on some worlds. Completely purged on others." The girls all blinked at her in surprise. "That was the basis of Nemesis's original rebellion against the Moon Kingdom. Anyways, it had reached the point where the population was three-fourths female and only one-forth male."

Crystal took a moment to enjoy her ice cream. "The problem was, the most of those women were still romantically interested in men. The solution, at least temporarily, was the allowance of polygamy. Women were allowed to share the same man, few that there were. Among the finer males, in a scientific sense those of more desirable traits, they were expected of it. After being approached several times, I had officially declared Ranma open to the laws of polygamy."

At this point, Crystal's grin returned. "The young man was immediately bombarded by suitors, many of which he had never met before. He was subject to spells transporting him into girl's rooms, love potions, the much more dangerous lust potions, and many things similar. There were points where his game of hide and their game of seek turned into an actual chase around the palace."

Haruka snorted, comfortably entwined with Michiru. "So you're saying that guy had himself a harem?"

Crystal's burst of laughter seemed to surprise her. That subsided after a few moments, though she was left smiling broadly. "Forgive me, it's just the idea of Ranma... No, I'm afraid that wasn't the case. He refused the girls, including those willing to share. It seemed to violate his principles, and he didn't like the idea of a complete stranger claiming love for him. Although, I think he already had someone in mind to whom he planned on giving himself to. A shame Queen Metaria attacked before he could."

There was a sly glint in Minako's eyes as she leaned forward. "Who do you think he liked?"

"I should inform you that your past self, Minako-san, was among those rejected suitors," Crystal said, and several of the others laughed at the now blushing blond. But then Crystal leaned forward his her chin in her palm, a wistful smile finding its way to her face. "As for who indeed he liked, it is hard to say. Those he was close to were few, but he never showed more favor to any one. Setsuna was one; Hotaru-chan, you were another; Yuka-chan was one; a woman none of you met was also a strong friend of his. I'd like to include myself into the list, as a close friend, though never did I receive any romantic attention from him towards me."

Rei seemed shocked. "You would consider having a relationship with the guy who practically killed your husband?"

A thought which had kept her up more than a single night. A thought that battled guilt and affection. Something buried behind her queen's facade, yet was there when she let the mask down. Crystal smiled softly. "Like I said, never did I receive any romantic attention from him, so the matter is not an issue."

XxX

Half way across the world, well outside of Japan, a form marched determinedly. With a black and yellow headband and a massive weighted pack, Ryoga pressed on. His red umbrella had protected him from the strange heatwave for the most part, but things had finally cooled down. He had been wandering the sands of a strangely immense beach for some time now, and he finally found traces of life and vegetation.

While he still didn't see any people, Ryoga was glad for this oasis of life. The heat that had bore down on him while he traveled the dunes of sand was strange for a beach, but Ryoga was dead certain that it was the breaches of Okinawa. He was sure that he would encounter people soon. Then, he would find that mysterious training grounds of higher gravity that Ranma had trained at.

As he walked past some form of plant, Ryoga cocked his head. "You don't see _that_ everyday in Japan. Okinawa sure is a strange place..."

A few seconds after Ryoga had passed, a form phased out of the plant in deadly silence. Green seemed to be the theme of her, a womanly shape sheathed in a skintight, leather bodysuit of forest green that blended well with the life around her. Bright green eyes followed Ryoga's form, narrowed slightly. Her hair, even, was a natural green not typically found on Earth, tied back in an exceptionally long ponytail behind her.

The woman followed Ryoga for a few steps before phasing into the nearest shrub. She had been following him ever since he had entered her oasis. She noticed he had the strangest traveling pattern, almost going in circles several times. The occasional human had entered her oasis before, but this one made her suspicious. No one traveled in the way this man did. His determined face proved that he was not lost, though he _was_ prone to muttering to himself. Something about 'hell' and 'Ranma.'

Ryoga spun around suddenly, umbrella pointed defensively towards where he thought he heard something. He scanned the area briefly before scratching his head. "I could have sworn something was there." Shrugging, he continued onward.

As he walked, Ryoga found the vegetation getting thicker and thicker. It almost felt like the vines were grabbing him, holding him back, as he progressed. Eventually, Ryoga found himself tangled in a mess of vines and branches. With a grunt, he heaved himself forward, tearing through the entrapment.

Ryoga broke through the plants unexpectedly, barely catching himself from falling. As he caught his breath, he turned to see a man-sized tunnel of broken branches and such behind him. Using his umbrella as a surrogate walking stick, Ryoga pushed himself into a straighter standing position and turned to see his new destination.

It seemed he found a temple of sorts. However, Ryoga didn't feel that was quite right, at least by Japan's standards. The building was old, very old by the looks of the vines that infested its stone structure. However, it had a certain... advanced feel to it. The structure of the building wasn't like normal ruins. It looked like some modern building, only built of stone. He regarded the place for a moment before he noticed a man stepping outside for a breath of fresh air.

Ryoga quickly marched towards him, eager for water or some sort of accommodation. It didn't take long for the man to notice his approach, stopping stone-cold at the sight of another person.

Once Ryoga reached the strange building, he got a better view of the man. His clothes, while a simple shirt and shorts, were made of a material Ryoga had never seen before. His skin was deeply tanned, probably from the oppressive sun above them. The man was old, between fifty and sixty, and completely bald – though shaved, not naturally yet. Despite his old look, the man was unusually sturdy, and his stance and movements were light and gracefully.

The man, seeing Ryoga's Asian look, finally addressed him. Ryoga recognized the greeting as Chinese, but he couldn't quite translate it. Seeing no reaction, the man frowned and tried a different language, this time Korean. Ryoga frowned and shook his head, not understanding. The man cycled through Vietnamese and Mongolian before finally addressing Ryoga in Japanese.

Ryoga smiled and said, "Hey."

The man sighed, as if Ryoga could have made things easier by simply speaking in his native language in the first place. "Welcome, honored guest. Might I ask you what brings you to the remnants of the Terran Palace of the Sahara?"

Ryoga scratched the back of his head. "Um, well, I'm actually looking for this place... A place where the gravity is higher than normal Earth gravity. Perhaps you've heard of it." Now the he thought about it, Ryoga realized how crazy the idea sounded. He didn't care, Ranma found it and so would he.

The man blinked in mild surprise. "I know of such a place."

Ryoga was before the man in a flash. "Oh please, tell me where it is."

The man backed up a step, blinking slowly at the speed. His eyes had barely traced the movement, and that was saying something. "My ancestors have told me that such a place existed for the settling of high gravity planets. Mercury established such training grounds for people who wished to settle on Nemesis, long ago."

Ryoga stared at him. He had no idea what the man was talking about, but he just said, "Yeah, well, I just need to train there for a bit."

The man gently placed his palm on Ryoga's back and guided him inside. "Honored guest, I'm afraid it will take more than "a bit" to undertake such training."

Ryoga blinked as he was pushed forward. "No, I'm pretty sure it won't take long. Ranma only had a day or two to train."

The man looked at his new guest like he was crazy. "If you truly wish to undertake the colonization training, it will take many months, most likely years."

Ryoga didn't understand how that could be, but he didn't feel like arguing with the one source who could finally show him the place Ranma had trained at. The man sat Ryoga down at a low table and prepared tea for the two of them. Looking around, Ryoga saw that, like he previously thought, the old temple had a modern look to the inside. Also, the place was huge. The man had called it the 'Terran Palace.' Well, it certainly had the stature of a palace.

The man sat on the floor on the other side of the table, across from Ryoga. After a moment, he finally said, "Forgive me for staring... I've never had a guest before. My father, and his father before him, all the way back to the beginning have guarded this place, the last survivors of the palace. We are to help any travelers who stumble upon this palace. You are the first I've ever seen."

"Oh, um... Well, I'm Ryoga," the martial artist offered awkwardly.

The man smiled politely. "My name is Urtec." He took a long sip of his tea before he set his cup down and stared at Ryoga thoughtfully. "So you want the colonization training, hmm? You will need the drug..."

Ryoga suddenly shook his head violently. He didn't like needles. "No thanks! I just want to train at the place of high gravity for a bit."

The man narrowed his eyes at Ryoga. "Excuse me, honored guest, but do you know what five times gravity will do to your internal organs without the protection of the drug? It matters not how strong you are with your muscles. Without the drug, your very blood will be unable to flow upwards and you will fall unconscious in the first minute."

Ryoga blinked at him. Five times gravity? He began grinning slowly. Ranma had trained at a place with only three times normal gravity. With this, Ryoga would surely become stronger than Ranma. His victory was in sight. His eyes hardened as he regarded Urtec again. If Ranma had taken the drug, so would Ryoga... Even if he didn't like needles.

XxX

Yuka was still awake when Ranma finally came home from his dinner with Setsuna. The girl had her human glamor up, sitting on their futon while absorbed into a book of some kind. She lifted her head as he entered and smiled at him.

She didn't trust sleeping alone still, afraid of the nightmares her time in the Negaverse would cause. Ranma knew he should have remembered. Granted, his time with Setsuna hadn't gone too far into the night, but obviously it was later than Yuka would have intended.

He began removing the nice clothes Setsuna had laid out for him for the evening. "Have you been up long?"

Yuka shrugged. "Not really." She gestured to her book. "It's a history book, covering what happened for the most of the last 3,000 years, though its reliability is rough at parts. So much was lost from the Moon Kingdom. I can barely see how things went from such a high of technology to something so primitive."

Ranma dressed into his night clothes and turned out the light. He found Nemesis, whom he regretted leaving for the dinner, then slipped into the bed with Yuka. The girl curled up to him. Her skin felt warm and real as Nemesis's illusions, and it was just as fake, a construct of false sensations from the glamor.

Under the soft flow of serenity his scythe fed into him, Ranma didn't take long to fall asleep.

XxX

_Ranma found himself in a lucid dream, walking along spotless white streets under a light green sky. Buildings thick at base and thin at top for weight distribution rose on either side of him in magnificent towers, gleaming dark greys and blacks and contrasting the streets. People meandered the streets, both as pedestrians and those in the time's version of cars, floating vehicles powered by soft glowing gems._

_Nemesis had herself pressed into Ranma's side with his arm around her, wearing her usual dress and bared feet. Her black eyes eagerly glanced from window to window as they walked, studying the goods offered within._

_Stopped at an intersection and waiting to cross, Ranma asked, "Commercial Sector, right? I've only been here once, to a port near the Western Ocean."_

"_Indeed." Nemesis smiled at him, giving him a quick peck on the lips before they started crossing the street. "Western Ocean, once called the Ocean of Storms, and earlier the Amrtyle Sea by the pure blood Nemesisians before the colonizers came. This is District 5, approximately 2,000 miles north and east of the port you had visited with your uncle, down in District 45."_

_Everything was organized precisely on Nemesis, into Sectors broken down into Districts into Communities. It wasn't her way, but on her were a ruling race of disciplined warriors, every living citizen having served time under strict military training, and the orderly way of dividing things came naturally to them. Ranma's second family had lived in the Imperial Sector._

_Upon reaching the other side, Nemesis suddenly pressed Ranma against the wall of a black building and molded herself against him, pulling him into a deep kiss. Ranma responded immediately, smiling as her hands began wandering his form._

_Both were breathing harder than normal when the kiss finally ended, and Nemesis smirked up at him. "You have the will of a titan, Ranma." She gave a pointed glance at where one of his hands had lowered during the kiss, then turned a suggestively raised eyebrow at him. He grinned back. "You can do that to me, and in the shower you paid the perfect amount of attention to the places I very much wanted you to, not at all skimming out, yet never is that great passion in you stirred up to the point where you take it further."_

_Ranma laughed, stealing one extra kiss before saying, "Don't think it any lack of desire. You can tease beyond endurance sometimes, but I want to honestly explore this with you, one step at a time. As much as my hormones argue otherwise, I'm going to wait until the moment is right."_

_Nemesis gave a small hum, then leaned against him to grind her hips slowly against his. "Perhaps I can make that moment sooner?"_

_Ranma made a choking sound and pushed off the wall to escape her, though she still remained in his embrace. Nemesis laughed at his response, holding onto him as they began walking again. He gave her a look and repeated, "Beyond endurance sometimes..."_

_Nemesis beamed at him, pink lips inviting another kiss. However, the moment seemed to pass, and she gave a pout towards the buildings and people around them. "I was intending on spending more boyfriend and girlfriend time with you and doing some shopping, but it's time for that surprise."_

_Ranma raised an eyebrow at her, and Nemesis smiled at him again as the world around them melted grey. Color bled back in in a dizzying rush, and in only a moment they were standing at the top of their secluded hill of purple grass surrounded by the squat forest._

_Genuine excitement shone on Nemesis's face as she spoke, "Last night we spent discussing the possibilities of the Demonata, so it was better to wait. Now is a perfect time however."_

_Ranma watched as Nemesis separated from him, and she sat at her usual spot before gesturing for him to step back a few steps. He complied. "So what's the surprise?"_

_A copy of his scythe, without the usual aura of tranquility, appeared in his hands. Ranma looked at it in confusion. At the same, the ground gave little tremors. Something about that triggered a memory in Ranma's mind, about one of Nemesis's native animal species._

"_Burrowboars, Ranma. Defend yourself," Nemesis suggested, a teasing lilt to her voice._

_Just then, four shapes erupted from the grass in a blur of dirt and rocks. Ranma's danger sense tingled faintly, and instinct took over. The back of his mind checked the gravity of the planet, immediately registering the standard Nemesisian three ESG, and he braced his legs in response to it. Two years of only one hand had the scythe prepared for just his left, but his right came up on its own in a defensive guard._

_Burrowboars were a local terror on Nemesis, similar to sharks and bears on Earth, and just as dangerous to an unprepared civilian. However, Earth didn't have a population of soldiers, so for something to reach a state of infamy on Nemesis meant it was a dangerous predator even among them. The tendency to hunt in packs made them even more dangerous._

_They were composed of browns and oranges, shape similar to large moles. Moles the size of calves, built with the dense and thick muscles that endured Nemesis's high gravity. The long claws were the real hazard, capable of shredding through rocks and finding flesh much easier. That they were carnivores made them natural hunters._

_Three sweeps of his scythe had the first burrowboars dead in sudden sprays of crimson blood, while he caught the forth with his right hand and ended its threat by slamming it into the ground and finishing it with his foot against the neck. No thought was required into the quick motions, and in near an instant it was all done._

_There was a breath of wind, and as quickly as the burrowboars came, their corpses were gone, in addition to all traces of their presence including the original holes._

_The song of adrenaline beat in Ranma's veins, a warm pounding providing tension in Ranma's muscles and a readiness to prepare to additional threats. His senses stayed sharp, though he glanced over at Nemesis, seeking explanation._

_She smiled at him easily. "You feel it, don't you? The way your body reacted to the, albeit minimal, threat? The tension, the motion of the muscles, functioning under three times Earth's gravity. It's all there, real as if this event happened out in the real world."_

_Ranma frowned and planted the base of his scythe in the ground, leaning against it. "What do you mean?"_

_Her eyes lit with excitement. "I can make it real here, Ranma. The power of contact. What you do here I can carry over to the you that is sleeping. The motions of your muscles, the sharpening awareness, adjusting to the higher gravity. I can make the training you do in your sleep actually affect your body. That clenching in your muscle you felt the other day was me using the muscle without pulling the limb."_

"_So you're saying..." Ranma thought about it. Nemesis could make it, or was making it, where if he moved or acted in the dream, his muscles would imitate it – in activity if not motion – with his real body. He could train while sleeping, in essence. Holy crap. No wonder she was so excited._

_Something occurred to him though. "Wait, Nemesis, if my body is still working while sleeping, how does it recover? Isn't that what sleep is supposed to be? Recovery?"_

_She sighed. "Way to spoil the fun. Yes, in truth this is not exactly healthy for the body. If it were anyone but a Senshi, I would not recommend it. However, you're recovery ability is significantly beyond other mortals. I believe you could do this every night, while taking a break every two maybe three nights, and show no negative effects. I plan on monitoring your body accordingly in the meantime, to be sure."_

_It sounded almost to good to be true. However, this was the same woman who made herself appear as real as flesh earlier simply through stimulation in his brain. She was just that amazing._

_Nemesis leaned back then, arms behind her making her breasts strain against her simple light green dress. A familiar grin was on her lips. "You know, sex is a great workout too. So long as its in the effort of training yourself and your body, we might as well-"_

_In two steps Ranma was to her, and he kneeled to give her a sudden kiss. Nemesis seemed surprised at first, then she happily gave herself into the kiss. When Ranma was finished, Nemesis was lying on top of him on the soft grass, both of them smiling at each other._

_Arms against his chest, Nemesis lifted herself up to peer down at him. "So does this mean we're giving the sex a try?"_

_Ranma raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you think?"_

"_I think," she started, mischievous smile forming, "that I've been in that bag for two days now without my conditions being met. And I think I'm going to cash in, one way or another."_

_Ranma's eyes widened suddenly. "Wait, Nem, don't-"_

_But she was already fading, the world with her. Ranma's lucidity began waning, his control over his dreams slipping away. And then, as he forgot what it was he was worried about, it was all gone._

XxX

A girl wearing green leather approached her. Her features were soft and honestly best suited for a housewife somewhere else, eyes a bright green and the face quite pretty. Her long hair was pulled back in the usual ponytail, still the green not found on any Terran. This girl had so much green about her, everything but her dark tanned skin. She was so in love with life that it seemed hard to believe this girl had once been the killer tasked with destroying her.

"Mother," the girl acknowledged with a bow of her head, "I've returned to feed you more magic."

She smiled at the girl, though slightly exasperated. "I am not your mother, daughter of Pluto." The girl, Tachi, hardly seemed to listen though.

Tachi sat herself cross-legged on a rock across from where she herself kneeled. They both could enjoy nature, though, and she respected the girl greatly for that. If Tachi had been her own, she would have made her her avatar and Senshi long ago.

Terra sighed, then shivered suddenly. Tachi had begun drawing in magic from the sky above, most powerfully from the sun. A torrent of the energy began pouring into her, a staggeringly significant amount compared to any mortal magic user. Nothing but a drop in a dried ocean for Terra, however.

Terra knew how she appeared to the girl in this body, physical traits selected from things unique to her. Reddish brown hair like the bark of her redwoods cascaded down her back in small curls. Her eyes were a lead grey, steely and penetrative and knowing. Unlike Tachi, her features were sharp, with her high cheek bones and hooked nose, looking more like the strict mother. The natural rosy hue to her cheeks softened that, at least. Her dress was sky blue, sleeves to her elbows and neckline actually to her neck, and it reached all the way down to her ankles when standing. Her fingernails she had lacquered a nice oceanic blue, for no reason in particular, though like Nemesis she kept herself barefoot.

"I saw a man today," Tachi mentioned, not needing much concentration to feed her the magic that had likely prolonged her life an additional two hundred years at least. Those years were expiring fast, however, and never could the girl give enough to keep a whole planet alive. "In my oasis. He reached the Terran Palace."

Terra nodded, having awareness of the happenings on her true body, even the drying husk that it was. "Ryoga Hibiki, born in Japan eighteen years ago. He suffers a curse of indirection I do not know the cause of, in addition to a Jusenkyo curse to the form of a pig. A rather vengeful individual, though not vicious beyond his morals. He poses no threat."

There was silence as the flow of magic into herself continued. Finally, Terra decided to just tell the girl what was on her mind. While she had no human psych, there was a relief in talking of problems with others even for herself. The problem was, she didn't truly know what to consider the dilemma yet.

"Not four days ago, the sentience of Nemesis appeared on myself, in a forest in Japan, along with her avatar the Senshi of Nemesis."

Tachi gasped and grew wide eyes, obviously familiar with the individuals. Terra knew she was. It was that Senshi that had saved Terra from Tachi years ago and had convinced the girl to return to her nature loving ways.

The same man she had given life to eighteen years ago as Ranma Saotome, the same she had seen reappear 3,000 years ago as a hybrid of herself and Nemesis as Ranma Uzuki-Saotome, and now he reappeared with a woman Terra knew should be dead. Nemesis's body had crumbled, the life on her extinguished, yet she had returned, years since Terra lost the ability to sense her.

Worse, the moment Nemesis had returned, her friend had sent a pulse into her. Nemesis wanted to speak with her, about what Terra already knew.

She sighed.

XxX

"You must have had some... interesting dreams, huh Ranma?" Yuka mentioned first thing in the morning.

Ranma groaned, mostly in embarrassment. Nemesis laughed inside his head, wicked girl she was. "Please don't mention that right now."

Yuka held up her hands as she climbed out of bed, though she tried keeping a smirk off her lips. "Far be it from me to make awkward comments about the guy who sleeps with me having wet dreams..." She paused for a moment. "Who was it about?"

Ranma groaned again, and Yuka couldn't hold in the laugh any longer. He mustered a glare for the scythe, but his cheeks burned too hot for it to be anything but a blush. Nemesis appeared beside the futon, kneeling, and she patted his shouldered in understanding. "You could have mentioned your love for greenheads earlier, Ranma. I hold no judgment against you."

Ranma swatted at her, and her illusion vanished as his hand passed through it. Nemesis's laughter filled his head again, and he felt his blush deepening. Dammit, he had no control over those kinds of dreams.

Yuka had finished dressing, and she sent a look Ranma's way as she lingered in the doorway. "You go take your morning shower now, Ranma-kun. Might I suggest one a little colder this time?" She dodged the pillow he threw towards the door, laughing again as she slipped out.

Between the teasing of both of them, Ranma was left glaring at the ceiling. After he realized that wouldn't make his little episode any better, he sighed and got himself up. He soaked up as much of the scythe's peacefulness as possible in the meantime, grabbing new clothes before heading to the shower.

He debated leaving Nemesis behind this time, but avoiding it would solve nothing. Best let it be an awkward morning and move on.

He stepped into the shower, and almost the same instant the warm water hit him, fingers found his shoulders and began a relaxing massage. It was disconcerting not being able to sense a living presence behind him as it happened, but he was beginning to adjust. And while Nemesis may not have been the best masseuse around, her illusion certainly made him feel like she was.

The massage continued over his shoulders and to his chest, until her arms were around him and her breasts pressed against his back. She no longer laughed at him, but the amused smile was in her voice. "So, greenheads, Ranma?"

He hung his head. And there it was. It wasn't his fault. At least, he was pretty sure it wasn't his fault. He had spent a lot of time with Setsuna the previous day, and if his subconscious just so happened to...

Nemesis slid around to his front, and her fingers lifted his chin until he was staring at her eyes. Her smile showed no betrayal. "So you had a dream of Setsuna and I both together, Ranma, and outside your control at that. Stop looking like a beat puppy." She bit her lip in amusement. "Though, I must admit your imagination keeps getting me oh so wrong in all the best ways."

Ranma snorted, but he was smiling too.

"Now, I know why you feel guilty, but let me remind you that if you indeed find yourself attracted to someone else, say Setsuna, then you are free to go after her, Ranma. We're only together because I, in all honesty, forced you," Nemesis said, her fingers tracing his chest.

"Not true," Ranma said immediately. "If I didn't feel something for you, I wouldn't have agreed, and we both know you couldn't force me on this. I like you, Nemesis, I really do. I... don't know why Setsuna was there too."

Nemesis seemed to almost glow at the comment, and even the illusion of her seemed to have her cheeks tinge pink. She pressed against him, causing contact in places that very nearly caused him to lose his control, and she gave him a brief kiss. "I may know why you included Setsuna, and that is what I wished to talk to you about."

Her face was close to his, black eyes staring deeply into his as she spoke, "Ranma, I do not mind if you have another girlfriend. It was a thought I readily accepted the moment Crystal had first announced your qualification for the laws of polygamy. I will not grow jealous." She smiled and glanced at the scythe he held off to the side. "Besides, if and when you have another wife, or wives, they can only hold your days. I now have your nights – your dreams – and that is more than I ever expected."

"Nem..." he muttered, then shook his head. She gave a pleased smile at the nickname. "I can't believe you're practically encouraging me to go after someone else too."

"Be assured that only the best conversations happen when your both wet and naked," Nemesis affirmed wickedly, though his body had noticed this long ago. Her smile toned down to warm. "Ranma, I love you. I only want you to be happy. If that means you're with someone else, then so be it."

A woman who cared about him, not about what he could do for her. He didn't even care about what she was allowing him, it was just the most selfless thing any girl had done for him before. Her comment filled him with a warmth, and he kissed her again.

"That isn't the case, but thank you, Nem. Really. I'm sure that Setsuna being there was just a one time thing." He held her then, just the two of them under the stream of water.

XxX

It was several days later when the next Demonata crossed over.

Ranma's training with the Senshi hadn't gone far, despite him forcing a daily regiment. There simply hadn't been enough time for anything meaningful yet. However, he was happy to note that the girls no longer included the lights and drama when attacking, though they still couldn't get the attacks out that fast. They had improved, though.

The main issue that had come to his attention, however, was Hotaru. The girl wielded the Silence, and with it she commanded the most magical power out of all of them, including himself. However, her physique was abnormal. Her Senshi form, by all means something that should have been equally impressive, was no better than a normal person's, both in strength and endurance. Untransformed, the girl was noticeably weak and fragile, tiring easily.

Having two Nemesisian uncles that were doctors didn't exactly make him credible, but Ranma did have at least a decent understanding around the subject. He had inspected Hotaru, much to her embarrassment, and found her muscles atrophied, severe enough to bother him. It took him some time and consultation with Nemesis, but eventually they reasoned out the cause of her weakness, in addition to a solution.

Saturn the planet had had its gravity altered to two ESG, twice Earth's own, near the start of the Moon Kingdom's founding. The people had since adapted, naturally and with some genetic engineering from Mercury. The old Hotaru, like Ranma's self, had a denser body than normal humans.

That left her under the same risks of losing muscle mass when living on planets with lower gravity. Which was what he was seeing now, except this Hotaru's body was perfectly Terran, not Saturnian. That had been the dilemma at least, until Nemesis enlightened him. While she was Terran, Hotaru's Senshi form was still the natural Saturnian, same as how Ranma would still have his Nemesisian body upon transforming if Crystal had succeeded in sending him into the future with the rest of the Senshi.

That explained why the girl seemed so normal when transformed, despite the Senshi enhancements. Her muscles were denser thus better able to handle the gravity, the exact shape she would need to handle the gravity normally in truth, but once those enhancements were lost and she recovered her Terran form, she lost the body and was left weakened.

The solution, also thought up by Nemesis, was to have Hotaru remain in her Senshi form, under Saturn's natural two ESG. She proposed this while crafting a ring for Hotaru, spelled to reproduce Saturn's gravity. Just another of Nemesis's many tricks and abilities, beyond Ranma's own.

Nemesis also gave Ranma a second ring, imitating her own gravity, to assist in his training.

Feeling the pull of gathering magic out elsewhere in Juuban, Ranma had informed the Sailor Scouts. It was time for their first encounter against Demonata.

Ranma was first on the scene, casually spotting the source of the energy. It was a man, muttering to himself like he was mad. No one else felt the gentle currents swirling around him, the magic giving the air a quivering buzz. There had been a time that the feel of magic had been so constant Ranma had grown numb to it, like eyes adjusting to brightness or a hand to hot water. Apart from what Nemesis produced, however, that buzz couldn't even be found anymore. It was getting to the point Ranma was recognizing the difference in feel between Nemesis's magic and other kinds.

The man finished his spell before the Senshi had arrived, though Ranma knew they weren't far. He grimaced slightly at the gory mess the man made. "What a way to go." Transformed and with Nemesis's magic, Ranma waved his hand to clean the blood from the streets, people beginning to stir a panic.

Nemesis was next to him, on the roof of a low building. She sat with her legs together and folded to the side, her illusion peering at the spectacle without emotion. Her hands were in her lap, though nothing about her gave away what she was thinking, same as if she had been here in truth.

"To stop them, you must kill them. To not stop them, they kill themselves," she muttered, black eyes narrowing at the dark pink portal left in the man's wake. "Coincidence is unlikely. Something holds sway over the minds of those who are giving their lives for this."

The Senshi were arriving finally, already transformed. First were the Inners, Crystal at their lead, followed by Haruka and Michiru. Last to come were Setsuna and Hotaru.

Hotaru still hadn't adjusted to her new burden yet, in all appearances even weaker than before as she fought the gravity, but Nemesis had assured Ranma that she would improve in time. The girl hadn't been allowed to detransform for two days now, instead having to change clothes from the _fuku_ into her civilian wear and back. Her walking had smoothed considerably though, barely panting under her breath as she arrived with Setsuna.

Ranma knew the risk in allowing this portal to run its course, which was why he made sure to be here before it completed. He was fully geared and ready in case it was a Demon Master that forced its way through. He would throw the magical equivalent of a bullet train backed by an atomic bomb at the thing to force it back into the portal and shut the thing behind it.

Ranma may not be able to beat the thing, but he sure as hell had the power to push it back.

His fears proved unnecessary however. A single demon sniffed its way through, just another grunt of their world, with no magical presence with it.

Sniffed seemed appropriate too. It was top heavy, the head making up the most of its body – hunched forward and ending with an enormous slobbery snout. Its eyes were just two green orbs on the sides of its head, arms vestigial and legs thick and meaty. It walked like an awkward Tyrannosaurus Rex, an image backed by the rows of jagged teeth under the snout.

"And so it begins," Nemesis acknowledged, the both of them watching the Scouts begin to form up in a perimeter around the demon and portal. The people had thankfully evacuated the immediate area.

Ranma watched the Demonata carefully, making sure no more tried slipping out of the portal in the meantime. "And so it begins."

XxX

Crystal watched her Senshi engage the beast. Six attacks began to gather in their hands, and all at once a wave of hell unleashed towards it. To their surprise, the demon recognized the threat and escaped in the most unlikely of ways, by simply jumping up and over the spells.

"How are you holding up, Hotaru-chan?" Crystal asked, standing next to Setsuna without allowing her eyes to leave the fight.

The girl wiped sweat from her forehead but beamed a willful smile at her. "I'm getting better." She had recovered her breath from the walk over, at least.

The dinosaur imitation proved surprisingly nimble, it's back legs stronger than Crystal originally gave it credit for. It successfully dodged the Sailor Scouts attacks again, and it continued to do so. On the plus side, it seemed limited in the ability of returning fire, projectiles completely absent.

"_WORLD SHAKING!"_ Uranus unleashed, her arm hesitating behind her for a few moments before the massive orb rocketed forward, eating up asphalt on the way. The demon snorted fearfully and leaped away, landing on a car with a heavy sound, denting the roof and setting off its alarm.

The car startled the Demonata further, and it leapt off again. It's wide green eyes honed in on the dark pink portal wistfully. The claws of its feet clenched and unclenched. It saw the approaching lightning strike from Jupiter and quickly scrambled clear, scrambling again as more attacks headed its way.

"They are only going to scare it back into the portal at this rate," Sailor Pluto acknowledged.

Crystal nodded slowly, though she felt the disappointment. Arguably, the demon was fast, so its likelihood of escaping was indeed high. However, it was a simple thing, something the Senshi should have defeated easily and by themselves. Crystal imagined a hundred of these escaping into the city, simply running past the Sailor Scouts and starting a massacre. And they couldn't kill a one.

The first interesting thing happened when the Demonata got close to Jupiter, snapping at her with its large head. The girl evaded it and lashed out with her fist, scoring a clean blow that staggered the thing back. She followed that by a slow forming lightning spell, her Jupiter Oak Evolution.

The Demonata stumbled in its attempt to escape, and because of that, it's entire right flank became seared by the powerful attack. Squealing in pain now, the beast broke into a loping run for the portal, desperate for escape.

"If you would, Pluto," Crystal asked politely.

"Of course, Serenity-sama," the woman responded, then ghosted away from them, her movements steady and unhurried yet very deliberate.

The demon made its final leap for the portal, several spells at its back. A sudden crack halted its momentum, and it went rolling off to the side of the portal. Setsuna stood there, twirling her powerless Garnet Rod in her hands. She gave it a challenging look as it slowly recovered its footing, jaws snapping angrily.

"_Dead Scream."_

XxX

"That was... so disappointing," Ranma sighed finally, now sitting on the edge of the building with Nemesis.

She patted his arm comfortingly. "Now, now. That is no fault of yours. They need to be faster, and you are teaching them how."

"Nemesis, how could I possibly lead these girls against the real thing? This is about as mild as they come, and Setsuna had to- Hey now, what's this?" Ranma turned his attention to the right, settling on the roof of the building across from his.

A man crouched there, a dark shape fairly well hidden. He was observing the fight as well, something red waiting in his hand. Ranma raised an eyebrow. This guy screamed potential enemy and suspect in the new occurrences.

The man moved suddenly, hand flicking out the red thing and sending a projectile towards the conflict. He followed, leaping from his heading place and entering the fray.

"Ranma," Nemesis said finally, leaning her head against his arm as they watched the proceedings. "That man is wearing a cape. Top hat, too."

"Yes, he is," Ranma deadpanned. "I think that's Prince Endymion... wearing his ballroom getup. To a fight."

"That rose he threw was infused with magic, and he hit the Demonata from that distance."

"Smart enough to wait for an opportunity and not cowardly enough to just wait his way through the fight. Decent control of magic. Can attack both quickly and efficiently. Hell, let's get the man his sword and armor back, and I think we might have a fifth capable of defending the city. Earth Boy doesn't disappoint," Ranma acknowledged.

He stood and offered Nemesis his hand. The woman raised an eyebrow at him before taking it. Her soft hand grasped his, and he lifted the woman, heavy as a true Nemesisian. All just an illusion to his mind, yet it felt so real.

The black ring on his hand caught his attention for the moment, reminding him of the heavy pull on him at the moment. Three ESG, just like on Nemesis. That woman... Her smile made her look so wonderful, and he gave her a kiss before she disappeared and he headed over to the conflict.

XxX

Between Endymion's arrival and the Scouts, the demon didn't last much longer. They appeared confused by how the bleeding carcass wasn't disintegrating, like their other enemies had. That wouldn't be happening this time he knew. This was real as it got, gore and stench and all.

However, just as Ranma was about to reach them, the tension between Crystal and Endymion rising, a blue apparition suddenly appeared between him and them. Ranma's eyes widened at the sight of it, slowing him to a stop. The Scouts noticed it too, beginning to gather themselves up for more spells.

As suddenly as the blue apparition appeared, something shot down from the sky after it, a scarlet blur even to Ranma's eyesight before it hit the blue in a soundless union. Like that, in a matter of only a few seconds, another man was there.

This man was tall, nearing seven feet, his features gaunt and skin pasty white. His cheeks were sunken in, the whole face locked in such a surreal lack of motion it appeared a mask. His eyes were blood red, with black around the iris instead of whites, giving him a sort of nightmarish gaze. Over his form was a crimson cloak, held together down the middle, which hung all the way to his ankles, where thin black boots peaked out. The cloak distorted the most of his body structure, though Ranma could still make out the slender muscles in his outlines.

In the newcomer's hand was an item of some significance. Around only a foot and a half long, it appeared a crudely cut tree branch of sorts, coated in silver. At the splintered tip of the rod, red lightning crackled without sound. The Stasis Scepter.

Ranma knew him. Xycell, Keeper of Space, counterpart to Setsuna, Keeper of Time. They had had dealings in the past, forming an odd sort of friendship. The kind only the Space Keeper and a Chaos Generator could have. Ranma's relationship with him was much the same as Setsuna's with Crystal, the current Order Generator.

The four of them – Crystal, Setsuna, Xycell, and himself – composed a group of universal check and balancing, two to protect the laws of the realm and two to prevent abuse of that power. Space and Time, Chaos and Order. Despite having it explained, Ranma didn't really understand all that much of it, and honestly it hadn't proved all that significant ever. What he did know though was that Xycell was a friend.

The other girls, however, did not.

Xycell's immovable face slowly turned to take in everything around him, the Senshi all having their attacks in their hands only moments from unleashing. At that range, with each of them on the brink like that, even a fast Demonata wouldn't likely escape. The red cloaked Space Keeper remained unconcerned, instead clearing his throat into the silence.

"I come in peace," he said with that rasp that only happened from too much disuse. Knowing Xycell, it was likely he hadn't spoken in years. Centuries even.

Ranma laughed, rich and deep, as he finished his approach and clasped the taller being on the shoulder. The term alien didn't apply much when different planets all had their own form of humans, but the Space Keeper was of a race so ancient the differences made it acceptable. Unlike the Time Keeper, whom had died and been replaced several times through the ages, he was the first and only Space Keeper, born near the beginning of time, if there was one.

"Man, am I glad to see you," Ranma greeted as Xycell's motionless face slid towards him.

He tilted his head in return. "Chaos Generator, greetings. How goes the war?"

The Sailor Scouts seemed to notice the lack of threat from the newcomer, and slowly they powered down their attacks, eyeing him cautiously. Good for them. Not trigger happy but not easily convinced. There really was hope for them.

Ranma jerked a finger towards the girls. "The kids over there put down Metaria for good, before I even got here. You guys sent me to a time a little late."

Xycell's attention returned to the Scouts. "Indeed?" His red eyes met Setsuna's. "It was your doing, then. You controlled the when."

Setsuna's lips formed a mysterious smile, and she spread her hands. "I remember the moment naught."

Uranus stepped forward. "Wait just a second. What's going on here? Who is this?"

For the first time, the Space Keeper showed surprise. His eyes hovered on the golden sword in her hand, the Talisman Space Sword, before meeting her eyes. "Interesting... I am the Keeper of Space. For what is going on, it is a matter of business. I must speak with some of you."

XxX

And with her final few hops, Cologne crested the hill and laid eyes on her home. Mousse was right behind her, muttering angrily to himself. His anger wasn't at the fact that he was carrying all of their bags, despite that there were many of those, but at what he had left behind. On that final hill, he turned around to face the direction they had come from. _Shampoo…_

"Get moving, boy," Cologne barked before starting down the hill.

Mousse leveled a dark glare at the Matriarch's back before following. He knew better than to make a run for it. Well, at least _now_ he did. He had tried three times since arriving in China, and every time Cologne had brutally taken him down and dragged him onward until he had enough strength to stand on his own… even when he had activated his curse and was flying high in the sky.

After customary greetings and (Mousse) dropping her stuff off in her room, Cologne wasted no time in marching off towards the council – the gathering of the other Matriarchs.

Dealings of the Kiss of Death and the Kiss of Marriage were always worthy of the council's attention, as they involved outsiders, and more so when they involved a Matriarch's own blood. Others were there as well, but Cologne pushed them out of her mind as she climbed down from her staff and faced the women she had grown up with, learned with, and fought with. She took a deep breath.

Despite knowing how foolish she would sound, Cologne explained the situation in all honesty. Amazons had their dealings with strangeness and magic - they lived near Jusenkyo after all and had once held possession of the Nanban Mirror - but they _had not_ ran the gauntlet known as Nerima to the point they were finely tuned machines at handling the unknown.

Time travel, ancient kingdom of darkness, queens of unimaginable power, _other planets,_ Shampoo's airen being 'resurrected'… all of that was dismissed and laughed at by the other elders, much to Colognes frustration, but it was to be expected. One woman did not laugh, however.

The woman was not a Matriarch. Her name was Feyri, which was obviously not a usual Amazon name. However, her long, bright orange, perfectly groomed hair tied into one bun near the back with a long ponytail stretching from the bun showed that she was of Amazon blood. Sometimes the outsider father had his way in naming the baby, Cologne knew.

Feyri was a fine specimen of a girl, with a shapely body and large, innocent green eyes that seemed to glow. Her muscles were toned, obvious through the thin and shimmering cloth that left her arms and legs bared. It was hard to place an age on her, however. She looked to be in her lower twenties and in full bloom, but her face… Her face was unsettling for Cologne. Her face looked _older_ than the rest of her: wizened, hardened, matured well past her years. It was strange; Cologne didn't remember this girl training or taking part in any tournaments. In fact, she could remember next to nothing of her besides the name.

"This… _Ranma_ said something about Jupiter?" Feyri asked, the man's name rolling off her tongue sensually, almost familiarly.

Cologne regarded her with a masked look. "He said that our techniques are a 'Jovian secret.'" Feyri's remarkably expressionless face melted into an unnerving smile, but she said no more.

The rest of the gathering went as well as could be expected before Cologne departed briskly, grumbling to herself about dried old women never stepping a foot away from their mother's breast. Her hut, if it could be called that, was of the size and stature fitting of her position in the tribe. She entered without a thought and angrily tossed her staff aside as she set about returning her things to their rightful places.

She felt rather than heard someone enter the wooden door of dried branches lashed together. She didn't turn from her unpacking to see who it was. She knew, from her finely-tuned ki senses. "May I help you, Feyri?" For some reason, the term 'child' didn't seem appropriate for the woman.

The orange haired girl rested against the wall by the door, arms crossed under her breasts as she watched Cologne move about the room. "Ranma… he was from 3,000 years ago, wasn't he?"

"Yes," Cologne barked, annoyed. She wasn't in the mood for this.

Feyri showed no reaction to the biting remark. "And this 'kingdom of darkness,' they were the Dark Moon?"

Cologne stopped her unpacking, turning to her warily. "What are you-"

"And they opposed the Moon Kingdom?" Feyri pressed on, still phrasing it as a question.

"I don't know-"

"And Queen Crystal Serenity IV ruled at the time, when the Dark Moon invaded?" Feyri asked, more to herself this time. "The Senshi were slaughtered, helpless against the iron tide. Ayame-sama could do little when the gas came, only warn those guarding the Gate before succumbing to it herself." She stopped there, staring off into the wall across from her.

Cologne's eyebrows were knitted together as she stared at the woman leaning against her wall. What did this woman know? How did she? Those were questions that ran through the Matriarch's mind as she peered at the ageless face through narrowed eyes. She opened her mouth to ask a question, but suddenly Feyri was gone, slipping through the door in long, quick strides.

XxX

_Xycell wanting to speak to Crystal, Setsuna, and I was expected given who we are. It was just as well that he came for us too, since he was practically the only one who could get me back to my Urgoks. But for the life of me, I couldn't see why he wanted to talk with Haruka afterwards, alone._

XxX

"You have no idea how glad I am to have gotten away from that," Crystal mentioned, hand over her heart.

The three of them that were Senshi had simply jumped onto a roof for privacy, while Xycell used his theatrical method of teleportation. The show off.

Ranma glanced over the edge of the roof to where Endymion's reincarnate was talking to the other Senshi, then raised an eyebrow at her.

Crystal's response was very nearly a pout. "I understand what you meant by the age of your body affecting the way of your mind. I haven't felt this kind of anxiety since... goddess knows when."

Ranma knew well her problem. He had been reborn a baby, irrationally desiring safety and comfort from his second mother. He had gone through the outrageous curiosity as a kid again. The rebel phase as an early teen. The hormones... He was old, but the body had always held a certain sway over him. Crystal herself, having taken over her daughter's seventeen year old form, was showing teenage insecurity and anxiety.

He politely kept himself from laughing at her. "Have you told him yet?"

Crystal grimaced. "I have. He did not take things well."

Ranma sympathized, but he noticed the other two staring at them and decided to put the conversation on hold. "So, Xycell, what's up?"

The motionless sentry of a man finally moved when addressed. "With your return came the memories of our involvements in the past. I have loose ends I must tie." The hand not holding his silver Stasis Scepter disappeared inside his cloak, and it returned clutching an envelope of some pearl-colored opaque material. An envelope from the Moon Kingdom, all three of them recognized. His crimson eyes bore into Setsuna's own. "Time Keeper, contained within is a letter written by your own hand. You wrote this for yourself during your forgotten period of omniscience and tasked me with delivering it upon the time of Ranma's return."

Setsuna blinked at that, a troubled frown finding its way to her face. "There is a reason that is forgotten, isn't there?"

"There is. To read this letter is to violate the very laws we have been tasked to uphold. For a reason I know not, you deemed this more crucial," the Space Keeper responded. Usually his words came without emotion, but when speaking of duty and the laws, Ranma heard his voice quiver with meaning. Such was the conviction that had always driven the Space Keeper.

Crystal's episode seemed to have passed. Her eyes were narrowed as she glanced between the Keepers of Time and Space. "Setsuna, what is he speaking of?"

The green haired woman hesitated, her gaze sliding from the envelope to Ranma and taking another moment before finding Crystal. The former queen's disguise had been dropped, leaving her with the silver hair and purple eyes that were her own. "Ranma died. There are details to his resurrection that you do not know, things that involve the Space Keeper and myself."

"And this letter?" Crystal pressed.

Setsuna's attention returned to the object in question, her expression turning pensive. "I remember only the plan for Ranma's return. The rest was forgotten, including writing this. However, there was a... moment when the possibilities presented by the time streams no longer had to be viewed by me. They were within me, all possible paths both past and future contained within my head. In a sense, it was omniscience."

One of her hands clenched a fist in hesitation, then she reached up to take the letter from Xycell's hand. "The information was obviously forgotten, such power not to be handled by mortals. However, what the Space Keeper is saying is that during that I wrote myself a letter, intent on using that knowledge to alter the events of the future. For myself to do that... To read this may be the only way we can prevent something terrible."

Crystal's deep frown showed how much she liked the idea, but she didn't raise a verbal complaint. Setsuna hesitated again in opening it, looking at Queen Serenity in askance. After a moment, Crystal nodded, allowing her to read what was within. It was the Time Keeper's job to make sure people never broke the Laws of Time, but it was the Order Generator's job to make sure the Time Keeper herself followed them. The laws were made for a reason, but sometimes, just sometimes, foresight could be the exact thing needed.

While Setsuna opened the envelope with shaky hands and began reading the letter, Ranma turned back to Xycell. "Say, Big Red, you think you could give me a lift to the Urgoks' world?"

The Space Keeper was silent for a few moments. Ranma blinked at that. Never before had the man had to consider giving help for the Chaos Generator. Finally, he gave a solemn nod. "I have only the one thing left to do. It can wait until after I provide assistance for yourself."

Ranma nodded his thanks, then turned to the other two. "You girls want to come? You can see the home world of my old familiar. A nice, snowy place."

Crystal smiled at him, but she was reluctant. "Do you believe it wise for none of us to be here in case there is another crossing of demons? I realize the attacks have been widely spaced, but if they are perhaps random..."

"I know how we can be sure. Hey, Setsuna, that letter say anything about not going?" Ranma gestured to the green haired woman.

Setsuna was frowning at the letter, but she gave it another glance before shaking her head at him. "Very little of this makes sense in the present, but there is no warning against it."

Ranma nodded. "See? So you're both coming. Xycell, you can take Crystal, can't you?"

The man turned his gaze on her briefly. "So long as you are in contact with me, she cannot interfere with my abilities." That was the thing about them. Like how Ranma's Chaos interfered with Setsuna's time abilities, such as her sight of him with the Gates, Crystal's Order screwed with Xycell's space abilities.

"Then let's go." Ranma smiled. If he got his Urgoks back... He doubted that this threat would require them, but it never hurt to be prepared. Besides, he would be seeing some old friends again, like Yuka and Xycell.

They gathered together, and Xycell space traveled away with them.

XxX

Space traveling was a rather... complex experience. It was not at all the instant teleportation one would assume the Keeper of Space to employ. It involved taking advantage of an anomaly in the natural order of things, bypassing certain laws of physics, and only the Space Keeper or someone knowing the right transportation spell could do it. Xycell didn't take kindly to those magic users that tried. Ranma would know.

Currently, the four of them were flying through space without sound nor air. The sights, however, were breath taking, no pun intended. The sheer speed of it was underestimated due to the lack of any wind or air resistance, but they whizzed past planets and stars so fast if they blinked they'd miss them.

The process involved taking someone's ki, all of it, and hurling it somewhere else. The anomaly was that in doing so, the body followed the ki, and without ki, the body didn't function right. In space, for example, it survived the experience without needing any magical or physical buffers. Also, if the ki had been moved behind a wall, the body followed it right _through_ the wall without damage.

Xycell called the whole thing a violation of the Laws of Space. Ranma could see why. However, the ancient man's position gave him certain exemptions from some of the laws, much like the Time Keeper being able to view things through the Gates of Time, and he could properly use it without repercussion - unless of course Ranma wanted to punish him for it, but that had never been the case.

To be without ki was unsettling for Ranma, but the many times he'd done this before made him used to it. He did wish he could speak though. The Space Keeper would hear him clearly enough if he tried, but it wasn't him Ranma wished to speak to.

Finally though, their destination came in sight, a whitish blue spec in the distance steadily getting closer and bigger. Moving at such high speeds towards a rather sudden stop seemed suicidal, and despite himself, Ranma found himself tensing in nervousness. The planet loomed closer, beginning to fill their vision, and onward they plowed without slowing.

Just as it seemed they would slam into their dooms, it was over. The bodies came to a halt the very instant they reconnected with their ki, and no harm was found on them. The final leg between viewing the planet and stopping happened so fast it was hard to adequately fear it.

Ranma let out a relieved breath, and breathing in again he felt the familiar crisp air filling his lungs. He smiled, beginning to look around the world they had all just appeared on.

It wasn't snowing, leaving a sky blue as Earth's own. The star providing for the planet was similar to the sun as well. The landscape at this part was painfully familiar for Ranma. Mostly snowy plains, white powder over packed snow, while in the distance were snowy hills and mountains. Off to the right was a village of sorts. Buildings were simple hunts made of light brown hides. In the center was the ever-burning bonfire, purple in color.

It was all just as Ranma remembered.

The cold bothered him little, a simple advantage of being Nemesisian due to ancestry. Setsuna, a being of Pluto, shared the perk, while Xycell always seemed unruffled whether he was walking through a blizzard or a firestorm. Crystal, however... Queen Serenity, blessed ruler of the sol system and the entire Moon Kingdom, wielder of the artifact known as the Ginzuisho, most powerful magic user Ranma ever had the pleasure of facing off against, reacted very... badly to the cold.

Ranma first took the time to notice her in the standard Senshi _fuku_, which was rather exposing compared to the long silver gowns she usually wore. It was odd to see her in one, every time he saw her. Besides that, however, goosebumps had broken out over her entire body, and she was shivering violently. They had only been there moments, and her purple painted lips were beginning to tinge blue. As a female too, the thin fabric of the _fuku_ did little to hide the way the tips of her breasts stood out in response.

Mostly successful in holding in his laughter, Ranma gestured towards the village. "We should head over."

Crystal had taken only her first shivering step before she suddenly barreled herself into Ranma's side. Her attempts to get as much physical contact between him and herself had Ranma blushing, especially once her cheek began nuzzling his chest. Her arms were around him tightly, one leg practically encircling his, while his own right arm rested against her back with how she had placed herself.

Ranma blinked at her. "Um... Crystal?"

The woman didn't stop her attempts to somehow fuse herself to him. Her words came briskly, the shiver taking away the sharp edge to them. "You. Are. Warm."

This time, Ranma didn't contain his laughter, and his arm around her held her to him. "Let's just get to the village. The Urgoks can get you some furs to cover with."

Setsuna was hiding her grin behind a hand as she watched the pair. "Serenity-sama, I don't believe Ranma can walk properly with you like that."

In the end, however, they managed to reach the village, even with Crystal glued to Ranma as she was. As they got there, the villagers began to take notice of them.

The Urgoks were, in truth, demons. Lesser Demonata, to be exact. Unlike their stronger brethren, they could be killed by physical means. They were of a race, so each was of similar form, and they were intelligent and quite capable of employing magic both productively and destructively. However, unlike any Demonata Ranma had ever encountered in his life, they had no desire or thirst for blood and death.

That had much to do with how they had been created. According to them, there had been a Demon Master named Madam Marietta that could feel human emotions. Long before Metaria ever came around, Madam Marietta had lived in this human universe and created life on this planet, multitudes of intelligent familiar capable of emotion as well, such as love, sorrow, hate, fear, trust, loyalty. Everything.

One day, however, another Demon Master by the name of Lord Loss had come. He had deceived her into thinking he too felt emotions, and he even wooed her into loving him. In the end, it was revealed that Lord Loss, while he understood emotions to the point of imitation, he craved only misery, loss, and sorrow. He betrayed her, using his own warmongering familiar to begin butchering her peaceful ones.

In the following battle, Madam Marietta taught her familiar the ways of war, and she fought back. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and the power of the Demon Masters warped the entire planet from forests and life into this snowy wasteland. Heartbroken from the betrayal, however, Madam Marietta began to lose her will in the battles while Lord Loss only grew stronger, until it became obvious she would lose. She instead invested the last of her power into a master banishment spell, not unlike what Queen Serenity had done to Metaria, and banished away Lord Loss for countless millennia, sacrificing herself in the effort.

By then, only her weak familiar, the Lesser Demonata called the Urgoks, remained. Of Lord Loss's side, the only ones that escaped the banishment were the Slythes. The mountains outside of the village were Slythe territory. They were naturally stronger as regular Demonata, but the Urgoks were smarter and the Slythes without a master. Urgoks now hunted the Slythe for food and hides, like they were animals.

The Urgok villagers that came to meet them were a tiny race. Only around two and a half feet tall, yet their forms were bulky and not humanoid, despite having two arms and walking on two legs. Their skin was a mix of light blues and snow white, blending well in the area and making them near invisible in snow storms. For 'hair,' masses of black spilled from their heads, solid shafts of segmented material like spider legs, each 'strand' a centimeter thick. Large green eyes were slitted with blue pupils, animalistic in nature. No noses, yet two holes in the sides of the area that could be considered the head were ears. In their mouths Ranma knew to be human-like teeth that were sharp in front, flat in back.

Their motions became very animated upon catching sight of Ranma, turning to each other excitably. They couldn't speak though, at least not out loud. Some held weapons, but none threateningly.

Crystal, still clutching Ranma, breathed out at the sight of them, nearly fifty already in sight and more pouring in from the huts. "So many..." Ranma looked at her. "You always only had Kresh with you, but there are so many of them."

And then something else came marching up. While most Urgoks topped out at two and a half feet, this one came at nearly four feet. It's spider leg-like hair was set in a mohawk, giving away its identity if its height hadn't already. The Guardian of the Urgoks, the one Ranma had chosen to bring with him to the Moon Kingdom, and his friend. Kresh.

The crowd parted for him, and Kresh walked boldly until he was before the arriving group. He held a long spear in one hand, a white rounded shield with the impression of a fearsome demon in the other. On his back was a strapped scimitar. Kresh was armed to the teeth, and if those weapons weren't enough, his magic was more than admirable.

Demonata only submitted to the stronger, and thus chose their strongest as a Guardian and representative of their race. Ranma had had to defeat Kresh in order to bind them to himself. Back then, Kresh had been good with weapons, but Ranma was obviously better. In the time of their parting, when Ranma had died, Kresh had grown significantly better, but his true strength was magic. Ranma had learned magic with Kresh, knew the demon's skill with it.

Since then, Kresh could only have gotten better.

The demon's eyes lit up upon sighting Ranma, nodding his head to him. Ranma smiled and nodded back. And then Kresh did the darnedest thing. "As good as it is to see you again, sir, you must defeat me to again have control of us."

Ranma blinked. Those around him blinked. Ranma blinked again. Finally, he said slowly, "You can speak."

Kresh grinned, mouth forming the words oddly yet clearly. "I learned, yes."

Ranma's eyebrows lifted. "Cool." His eyes glanced at the still growing crowds, now around one hundred and fifty of them. That was almost their full force. "Can any of you get some blankets for my friend here? She isn't used to the cold."

Although he was not their master anymore, two near the back immediately broke off from the group and darted into a hut, returning with blankets. Ranma took them from them and thanked the Urgoks. They bowed their heads and retreated.

He wrapped Crystal in the furs, and she used one hand to keep them flush against her. However, she desisted from letting go of her hold over him. When Ranma raised an eyebrow, Crystal gave him a stubborn yet much more dignified look. "The blankets need to heat up. You are warmth."

He huffed in amused exasperation, turning back to Kresh. "Well, I'm ready when you are. We should leave the village for this though."

Kresh nodded, peering out into the snowy plains that stretched as far as the eye could see. "The last time, we fought with only weapons because I knew you didn't know magic. This time, however, I know that you do, and so we must fight with both."

_Dammit._ Ranma had expected as much though. He had to use both hands to detach Crystal from him, in which she immediately darted to Setsuna. He pulled off the ring Nemesis had made for him, freeing him of the three ESG, and he gave it to Xycell for safekeeping. Then, he and Kresh began walking away from the village together.

Ranma knew he was better than Kresh in a physical fight. However, even as a Senshi, Ranma knew Kresh was better than him with magic. More skilled at handling it, at least, though in an all magical fight it would be in Kresh's favor. That had been 3,000 years ago. To fight both physically and magically, then add in whatever experience and power Kresh had gained over the last 3,000 years...

There could be no holding back.

Setsuna might have been from a planet that had such a distance from the sun that her cold tolerance extended well into the negatives. That didn't mean she was used to the cold, only not under threat from it, so she soon joined Crystal under the blanket and huddled for the warmth. The lunar queen gave her an approving nod, then turned towards the fight.

They were still at the village, surrounded by the little Urgoks. Crystal knew not to be afraid though. Ranma had discussed them with her before, so she knew she was safe with them. In the distance, Ranma and Kresh finally seemed to deem themselves far enough.

From the start, Crystal saw that Ranma was going all out. The very first blow shared between the two was loud enough to be jarring even with the distance. It started physical, as an awesome sort of warmup, in which Crystal could barely track their movements, the two moved so quickly. The clashes between them were heavy, Ranma's full strength being met adamantly by Kresh's, and the speed the two displayed was too fast for her to see which was faster.

And then the two brought in magic, and Crystal felt Setsuna tense up against her. Crystal didn't blame her. Her eyes were transfixed on the fight, more breath taking than any show of fireworks she had ever had over her palace. The sheer power shared between the two...

Crystal could swear she felt the _heat_ of the flames all the way over where she was.

The raw force of Ranma cutting loose, to Crystal, was something frightening, even as an ally. She tried to remember what it had been like testing herself against him in the last duel they had shared, but she couldn't remember the savage ferocity he was showing now, the ground-trembling power as he mixed magic with physical strength and unleashed himself against Kresh. Ranma was a terror in the battlefield, he always had been, and to watch his friendly fights against the Senshi had always been fantastic entertainment. This, however, was... something else.

Kresh, too, rose to the challenge. Crystal understood very clearly why Ranma had assigned the Guardian Urgok to defend her at the palace while he went out to face Metaria's forces. She had never seen Kresh actually fight, but she remembered the moment where he had canceled a full powered blast of Metaria's with just his own magic. Kresh indeed had earned his place as 'he' and not 'it' to her. Now, she was seeing what it was for him to unleash his potential offensively, and it was equally impressive. She didn't believe that all the Senshi against him, excluding herself, could win without getting lucky.

The ground would shake at times from the two. Still they watched in silence. Crystal could see the Space Keeper out the corner of her eye – her eyes wouldn't budge from the fight – and his face remained entirely impassive to the strength being displayed. It said something about him. Crystal tried to imitate him, schooling her stunned expression and easing the tension from her lower back, but she could not, for the life of her, slow her racing heart.

The fight was just _exciting._

"Serenity-sama..." Setsuna breathed eventually, "how did you ever beat him?"

A roaring explosion and a tremor that had Crystal clutching Setsuna to steady herself interrupted a response. Then, she managed, "I... He was not this skilled then. The only time I ever beat him was before he was a Senshi."

A lance of lightning shot from the sky into the battle, and Crystal could not tell who was the intended target. The immediately following thunder rumbled through her whole body. Her heart beat faster. Crystal licked her lips.

The titans fought longer, seemingly running on endless reserves of stamina and magic. Injuries on the two seemed to vanish as fast as they appeared, never hindering them for long. And then came the finale.

Crystal relied on Setsuna for balance as a series of violent explosions rocked them, and they both had to shield their eyes from the brightness of whatever attacks were being cast between the two. Not knowing what was going on, with the shaking ground, roaring booms that were deafening even in the distance, and the inability to _see_ it all, had Crystal's heart racing with anxiety.

And then it was over.

The silence following seemed unreal. With it came the lack of lights, so Crystal lowered her hand to see the results. There were gouges in the snow, deeply furrowing trenches and massive craters beginning to fill with snow melt. The scenery was devastated from the fight. Crystal understood why the two had held it far away from the village. Apart from that, however, were the two figures.

Only one remained standing. The other lay on the ground, defeated, held at the point of a blade. Not just any blade, either. It was black, curving long, and attached to a wooden pole of silver and green. The blade of a scythe. Ranma had won.

Crystal felt excitement lurch about in her, to the point where she wanted to cheer for him. She refrained from it, though, knowing she could and would congratulate him in a proper manner when he returned to them. Even without her position, she had been raised to behave as a queen should.

Setsuna stood up then – Crystal didn't even remember when they had sat down – but she hovered for a moment. Crystal followed her in standing, intent on meeting with Ranma. And then she felt something, and her cheeks tinged a light pink.

Setsuna noticed, and her voice came with a touch of embarrassment and amusement, "You too?"

"It was a very..." Crystal cleared her throat. "Exciting battle."

"Indeed." Setsuna turned to her, and they shared sheepish smiles.

Out in the distance, Ranma appeared to say something to Kresh. When he finished, his body pitched forward, scythe slipping from his fingers, and he collapsed into the snow next to Kresh. Crystal and Setsuna both began hurrying over to him, while Kresh rose to his feet and lifted Ranma over his shoulder.

XxX

There was something wonderful about waking up without injury. It was something most took for granted, usually a daily matter for them. For Ranma, however, it was a rare thing and a magnificent feeling. For the last few days since his return to the present, he had sapped as much of the feeling as he could.

Waking up from his fight with Kresh, Ranma did not get to enjoy such a thing. It came with aches and pains from wounds both internal and those hastily healed in the pitch of combat. His muscles throbbed in an unpleasant manner, reminding him of the abuse they had just been subject to, while joints ached their own protests. From this fight in particular, his left shoulder hissed a fiery agony, as he knew it would for the next few days.

With experience, Ranma blocked out the lingering pains and opened his eyes. He was inside one of the Urgok huts, his own if he remembered correctly. His shirt had been removed, pants thankfully left on, and covered in a thick fur blanket similar to the one given to Crystal. Also in his tent with him were familiar faces.

Setsuna, Crystal, and Xycell were all there to his right side, the silver haired queen kneeling by his side with a pretty look of concern on her face. To his left were three Urgoks, the very same he had woken to the first time. Kresh, Kresh's mate Hemild, and Adafild.

Adafild was not particularly old for an Urgok, having fought with Kresh in the battles between Madam Marietta and Lord Loss. However, Ranma had always gotten the grandfatherly vibe off of him, as the Urgok lorekeeper, magical and historical expert, and general consultant for Ranma. Demonata had a different way of using magic from humans, but still Adafild had managed to teach Ranma most of what he knew about it.

Currently, Adafild had his hands clasped before him, and his inhuman eyes lit up upon noticing Ranma awaken. "Ah, welcome back, Master Ranma. You have been missed since your untimely... departure." His lips didn't move from the small smile when speaking. Barring Kresh, they could not speak outside of the telepathic bond between them.

"I've told you before, just call me Ranma." The beaten martial artist turned soldier began to sit up, wincing as his body protested the movements. The blankets slipped from his shoulders to his lap, but Ranma managed to at least keep himself up. One hand came to his left shoulder, where the burning pain was.

"Of course, Ranma." Adafild's grin widened slightly as he bowed his head.

Crystal laid a soft hand on Ranma's arm, her eyes lingering on his left shoulder. "How are you feeling?"

Ranma's eyes followed hers to his shoulder, and he moved his hand away finally. The source of his pain was a familiar mark, branded in with magic. It was a tattoo symbolizing the Urgok's enthrallment to him, a portion of magic from each of them siphoned into the mark and connecting him to them. With it he could take and use their magic, command the Urgoks, speak to them over distances, and hear them speak.

The magical branding was blood red in color. It came without a pattern, crimson strands of what looked like the Urgoks' hair stretched and intertwined together, circling in towards a fiery orb like a sun or a ball of flames. Through the center of the orb was a vertical black slit, and it took the appearance of something very much like an eye. Adafild had once told Ranma that the fiery eye was the mark of Madam Marietta and the segmented strands like spider legs the mark of the Urgoks.

"I feel like I just went through nine levels of hell and barely survived," Ranma said finally, turning a grin to Kresh. The Urgok grinned back, dipping his head in respect. "Hell of a fight, Kresh."

"You are still the better of us, Lord Ranma," Kresh returned. "Even after viewing your battles against Metaria's forces, I admit not expecting such strength."

Ranma had tried kicking the title habit out of the warrior Urgok, but he had had more luck staring down a stone wall. Kresh just cycled through different words when Ranma ordered him to stop, and once it reached 'madam' Ranma had just let him have his way.

"Will you be here long this time, by chance?" Adafild asked, his tone politely inquisitive.

Ranma wished he could stay. The Urgoks' village was home as much as any other place. Ranma had lived there for nearly two years, just as long as he stayed stayed in the Lunar Palace with Crystal. Life was simple in the frozen wasteland. There was always work to be done, with Urgoks ready to do it. Occasionally hunting parties would venture into the Slythe mountains and return with game. They were a close-knit community, even having festivals on occasion. Best of all, Ranma had been free of threat, free of responsibility, simply passing the days as he trained and learned with the friendly demons.

Metaria had come and ruined that peaceful life, however, and this was his first time returning since.

Ranma shook his head, regretting the necessity. "From one problem to another. Metaria is gone for good, but we've got another enemy interested in crossing Demonata to Earth. If they get a Demon Master over..."

No more needed to be said. The Urgoks knew they weren't like their brethren. After Madam Marietta's loss, and before Ranma came by, they lived in perpetual fear that they would one day be found and slaughtered by some stronger Demonata. Ranma enthralling them meant that they could not be captives to a crueler master whom used their capacity for love to torture them.

Adafild nodded solemnly. "Understandable... From your battle with Kresh I see that you have indeed grown much stronger since our parting. However, I am hesitant to point out that your training with magic is still unfinished. I make no presumptions of directing your actions, but... perhaps it would be in your best interest to take advantage of the fact that you are here before returning to your Earth."

Ranma laughed, then grimaced at the pain it caused him. "I'm not going to punish you for speaking up to me, Adafild. You know that." He sighed. "You're right, though. I've got plenty of power, but with only two years worth of training... It just isn't enough against the stronger opponents. But I don't have the time for more, though."

He looked around and spotted his scythe propped against a wall. "Someone hand me that and help me stand."

Crystal immediately got an arm around Ranma and began helping him rise. Setsuna, standing closest, picked up the weapon. She turned with it, about to hand it over, when suddenly she froze. The aura had that effect sometimes, Ranma knew. Nemesis may even be giving a comment or two.

Trying to keep the most of his weight off Crystal, Ranma hobbled over to Setsuna and relieved her of the weapon, turning the aura to him instead. Mercifully, his wounds began to lose importance as the tranquility ran through him, easing his pains and burdens. After a moment of just taking that aura in, he was able to stand without the support.

"Let's go outside," he suggested finally, turning back to the Urgoks in the room. "And it's been 3,000 years since we last saw each other. Tell me what's happened since, besides Kresh learning how to speak." He found his shirt and threw it back over his shoulders, sealing up the front with a tiny spark of magic.

His first step outside was into the biting cold that didn't seem to penetrate the skin. It also included the sudden appearance of Nemesis, in her usual dress.

The green haired woman shook her head at him, first thing. "I had to _heal_ the scythe during that fight of yours. The stress on the wood at times was over breaking, and the metal – _my_ metal, black copper! - warped from some of the blows." She sighed, stepping up to him to pat his arm. "Do try and remember that that weapon is now my body next time, dearest Avatar."

Ranma winced. "Sorry, Nemesis. I'll try and remember for next time."

Adafild was first to follow him out. "Not much has happened since we last met. Life simply continued, and we have survived in the meantime."

He was followed by the other Urgoks and then the guests – Xycell, Crystal, and Setsuna. Nemesis grew a mischievous smile suddenly, one Ranma didn't trust at all. No one could see or hear her but him, though, so that much was okay. So Ranma hoped.

The woman sauntered up very casually to Setsuna, and that bad feeling Ranma had suddenly worsened. The illusion of Nemesis studied the taller woman, then turned a raised eyebrow back to Ranma. Ranma wanted to say something to her, but he bit back the comment. Nemesis reached back and pulled forward a few tresses of her dark green hair. She then used her other hand to – to Ranma's vision at least – gently pull away some of Setsuna's own and compare the two shades of green. Setsuna's was darker.

"Ranma, what are you looking at?" Setsuna asked, a curious smile on her face.

Ranma blushed, while Nemesis laughed at him from her place. "N-Nothing."

He looked away, but then, against his better judgment, looked back to see what Nemesis was up to. The minx had herself pressed into Setsuna's side, the woman's arm around her, and she gave Ranma a coy smile. "So is this like a dream come true?"

"Kresh!" Ranma blurted, head whipping to the demon while his cheeks burned hotter. "What about you? Surely you didn't just sit around in the meantime."

The tall Urgok glanced briefly at Adafild before turning his attention to Ranma. "I'm afraid our innate lack of creativity runs true, Lord Ranma. I'm still amazed that I had figured out how to speak on my own, and that took centuries even using you humans as an example, with the clues of vibrations and running air through the throat."

Ranma hadn't considered that before. Demonata had very little in the way of creativity. It was why they took shapes and models from animals on this side, because they couldn't think of anything new for themselves, though they did have a preference to claws and fangs and other nasties that assisted in bloodletting. Demonata didn't have lifespans, either, yet for all their age, they rarely ever improved themselves or their methods despite their intelligence. In 3,000 years, man may have gone from a returned primitive state to a rising technological age, but for Demonata they had either survived it or they had not.

Conflict forced changes, however. Yuka, always struggling for her life for two years, had constantly improved herself for continued survival. Things were like that in the Demonata universe, change through strife and survival of the fittest. The Urgoks had little conflict on this side from their universe, and thus changed little.

"However, I did also manage to overcome my physical weakness. I may only be killed by magic now, Lord Ranma," Kresh included, the excitement and pride evident in his voice.

Ranma blinked at Kresh in surprise. "You did? Kresh, that's great! You aren't Lesser Demonata anymore."

That really was a feat, too. Kresh had been stronger than the most of his Demonata brethren for some time now, but that had always been the difference between them. Cut off Kresh's head with a sword and he was dead. Cut off a Demonata's head, it got back up twice as angry. Of course, it wasn't as wonderful as it sounded. Most weapons held enchantments of some sort, which allowed it to cut through whatever it was that caused that ability. Ranma's own scythe for example, even before Nemesis, would still kill Kresh if it disemboweled the demon. Other Demonata, as beings of magic, also were a threat, like Yuka's claws.

Still, the were benefits to it.

Crystal, bound tightly in her furs, walked up to him. "Ranma, when will we be leaving?"

"Soon," Ranma assured. Setsuna's letter hadn't warned them against this, meaning there wasn't much of a risk in being here, but the sooner they were back the better. "Adafild, you have any tips for me on magic? I don't need to learn it here, but I can puzzle it out on my own back on Earth."

The Urgok nodded. "Of course. I was given a detailed assessment with your earlier fight. This is a simple concept, but you can make much of it, I'm certain. Kresh, come here."

The taller demon walked over, standing next to Adafild. "Now, Ranma, throw a punch at Kresh. Kresh, all you need do is simply catch his fist."

Ranma approached the duo, nodding to Adafild. He stopped before Kresh and lowered himself into a stance. Drawing in a slow breath, Ranma threw a fast punch with his right hand. There was a heavy smack as Kresh caught it in his own hand, and the Guardian slid back a foot in the snow, feet digging trenches in it.

It was simple enough, and Ranma turned back to Adafild quizzically.

Adafild grinned slightly, holding up a hand with the palm out. "Now do the same to myself. I'm afraid my reflexes aren't quite the same as Kresh's here, so please aim for my hand."

Unlike Kresh, Adafild was not a fighter. Ranma hesitated. "You sure about this? Do you want me to hit soft or something?"

Adafild shook his head. "No, this is the importance of the lesson, sir. Simply hit the palm, and you will understand."

Ranma was uncertain as he positioned himself before Adafild, but he trusted the aged demon. He held his breath for a second in case Adafild had something to say, then lashed out a fast punch directly into the palm.

Unlike with Kresh, Adafild didn't budge an inch. Snow billowed from below his feet in a small explosion of white, but Ranma could have been hitting a titanium wall for all the give Adafild moved. Ranma's knuckles protested the impact, and he pulled back from the palm to shake them out.

"Try again, if you wish. I can handle a few more blows," Adafild suggested, a knowing grin in his voice.

Ranma left Nemesis's aura as he slid the scythe in its sheath on his back, then prepared himself again. He threw another punch, this time expecting the immovability and not jarring himself as bad. His punched with his left, then right again. Each time Adafild remained motionless, and more snow flew up from beneath his feet in harmless clouds.

When Ranma finished, Adafild was showing signs of strain, but he was still grinning. "I warn you that the next will hurt you, Ranma, though I still recommend you try, for your best interest."

Ranma raised an eyebrow. Whatever Adafild was doing interested him. He wasn't changing the composition of his body to something harder like metal, but it had the effect like an invisible shield. Something to do with the way snow was flying beneath Adafild's feet, Ranma knew. While it wasn't exactly humiliating for his strength to be proven useless against the tiny demon, Ranma felt the urge to hit hard this time, just to see if he could overcome it.

Ranma's next punch came with almost all of his strength, his injured body protesting violently, and his fist slammed bone shatteringly hard against Adafild's small palm. Instead of snow flying beneath the demon's feet again, something entirely unexpected happened. And it hurt. A lot.

There was a loud crack as Ranma's fist hit the palm, and the instant later Ranma recoiled violently. His eyes widened in surprise and pain, and he cradled his fist against his chest. What the hell had the demon done to his hand? "Adafild, what did- what did you do?"

"My apologies," Adafild bowed, genuine regret in his voice. He straightened to fold his hands together, animal-like eyes watching Ranma without emotion. A gentle lecturing voice followed, "What you just experienced is magical redirection of force. To just stop something with magic takes energy. The more powerful force you are canceling, the more energy it takes, as you are already aware.

"Much like your martial arts, I redirected your force instead of simply stopping it, conserving energy. Your first punches were an inward force to my body. I instead redirected it to become an outward force into the ground exiting my feet. The last, I turned the force outward through my palm, back at your fist, hence the pain you are now feeling. Like using your body to deflect powerful blows, I am simply using magic to deflect them."

The throbbing pain in Ranma's hand and wrist was reluctant to ebb away, but Ranma forced himself past the pain and straightened himself, allowing the aching hand to fall to his side. "I see," Ranma said finally, pain not touching his voice. "Impressive, Adafild."

The small demon smiled. "Thank me naught. Madam Marietta herself taught me everything I know of magic. Now, while the concept is simple, this technique is quite difficult, as you will come to find. The way we both use magic is very different, but even your method of intent will come down to specifics and timing. I wish you luck, Ranma. I will answer any questions you may have whenever you so wish."

This was where he needed to be to properly train himself, Ranma knew. There was just so much Adafild could still teach him, little tricks like this Ranma knew would be a huge advantage. Kresh may have been the Urgok fighter, but Ranma wouldn't put it past Adafild to be able to thrash him in a fight.

However, while Ranma needed his training here, the Senshi needed to go to him for their training. He was sure Setsuna or Crystal could do a decent job, but Setsuna herself was still his own student while Crystal was only good because of the power her Ginzuisho granted her. If time was an issue, he would be the best choice.

Of course, that meant the solution could be them all on the Urgok's world, training together. That could never happen though, with first the threat of Metaria to the Moon Kingdom preventing them from leaving and now the threat of Demonata crossing onto Earth.

One day, Ranma would finish his training with Adafild. He wasn't sure when it would be, but he would.

XxX

Life with Nodoka had been interesting, to say the least.

Bec navigated the streets of Tokyo easily now, passively avoiding collision with the countless individuals. At Nodoka's insistence, she had recently taken up a job – it would help her adjust, she had said. Presently, Bec had just gotten off a work and was heading back to the Saotome family home.

This era had thus far been astounding. Bec knew magic, had seen the wonders the crackling unseen energy could produce, but in this time where magic was all but gone, her fellow humans had moved onto things equally wondrous. Electricity, Bec had learned, was the new 'magic.'

And instead of Druids or Priestesses, anyone could work with this energy. Anyone could learn how to manipulate it as well, going through an academy to be electricians, engineers, physicist, scientists – there were so many names of those who learned electricity manipulation.

Once it became apparent there was no easy way back home, Bec's curiosity took a hold of her. She wanted to learn this electricity, the mechanics and constructs she could make with it. More than that, she wondered if there were ways to mix magic and technology to make something even more fantastic.

The shock of this time had since worn off, but not Bec's intrigue. She had a perfect memory, every moment of her life from birth to present archived within her mind. She may have missed the beginnings of Japan's rigorous schooling – as Nodoka had said – but Bec intended to use her mind to make up for it. With a perfect memory, she learned things fast and easy.

Bec inhaled a deep breath, soaking up the magic offered by the sun above, and exhaled, releasing the magic into the air where it swiftly drained away into the Earth. _Lord Loss and his damn 'gift.'_

Her thoughts at times drifted back to her old friends, the clan she had left behind. Brave warriors, all of them. She missed them. She also thought of the quest that had caused her to leave them, the Tunnel allowing the Demonata steady access into the world. Their adventure was bloody, grim, filled with danger and treachery. Connla and his betrayal came to mind.

Though the most of them had been killed by the time they closed that Tunnel, there were those whom had lived. Drust the Druid, her male mentor in magic. Bran, the lovable kid with his remarkable abilities. Upon using the small Magician – Happosai, Ranma had named him – as a sacrifice, Bec had used the magic of the lodestone to allow her two companions to escape. She wondered what had happened to them.

And as she was prone to of late, her thoughts turned to Ranma. She had done her good deed for the world, she had given all she had to offer, and only through luck and a Demon Master's cursed gift had she succeeded in saving it and surviving. Yet again the world was facing a threat of some sort.

She desperately didn't want to involve herself in that sort of work again, even though she knew it was selfish. She had the ability to help, but she hadn't asked for it! She didn't want Lord Loss's essence inside of her, that access to magic outside of nature's bounds – to reach into the stars and the sun and the moon and take magic there.

Bec, in her walk home, felt something brush against her skin. There was a low buzz, gently caressing her skin like a passing wind in a familiar tingle. The contact lasted only for an instant, then passed. It left Bec rooted in place, the shock stopping her.

Someone was practicing magic nearby.

Bec closed her eyes and did as Drust had taught her. She sent her magical 'sensors' out, like a strange awareness outside her body that touched things her other senses could not, able to detect magic and beings of magic like Demonata. She felt the source of the magic, coming from a building behind her. Magic hung around the person like a cloud, the words of a spell causing it to pulse and shift specifically.

Excitement bubbled up in Bec. Another magic-user, like herself. The only other she had met in this time thus far had been Ranma. Turning around, she fought her way through the crowd to enter the building, keeping her sense to magic open and honed on the person.

The room appeared to be a merchant's for clothing, nearly empty of buyers. Bec's senses told her the person was through the door at the far end. She made her way over, a smile on her lips.

The door read something in the strange writing of the Japanese. Her translation spell only worked on spoken words, not writing, so she payed the words no mind as she opened the door and stepped inside.

Immediately she felt the magic stirring in the air, brushing against her and her senses in a lovely pattern. Oh, how she had missed the feel. In her time, there hadn't been much magic around, but at least there always had been _some_.

The room would have been large if it weren't piled with so many things and boxes, with shelves filled to capacity and even some staffs with odd endings propped against the wall. One of those was a broom, she knew from Nodoka's lessons. The room was lit by a single yellow bulb on the ceiling, discoloring things yet giving it better light than fire would at the same size.

At the far wall was the Priestess. The woman was attractive, perhaps only a few years older than Bec, with long black hair. She wore clothing not much different than Bec's own work clothes. Her eyes were closed, lips moving in the steady chant of a long spell. It was true, she really was a magic-user.

Bec contained her excitement in favor of politeness, allowing her fellow Priestess to finish whatever spell she was working on. She closed the door behind her and began to walk over, remaining distant enough to where she didn't become a distraction. After a few moments of watching, hearing the flow of words rise and fall pleasantly, Bec closed her eyes and enjoyed the feel of the stirring magic.

It didn't take long for the woman's last notes to trail out, and all the magic in the room drew together towards the woman. Bec felt sad at its loss, as if being blocked from a beautiful view or as if all the warmth of a room was removed. At nearly the same instant the woman's words of magic ended, a low hum filled the silence.

"What are you doing here?" the Priestess shrieked suddenly.

Bec opened her eyes and blinked. The woman was staring at her, dark eyes wide with fright and surprise. What had Bec's attention, however, was the soft blue shape of light hovering next to the woman. It was giving off the hum. The patch of light appeared two-dimensional, completely flat while its face was a single block of luminescent color with sharp edges.

Something was off about the light, and the Priestess's response. Bec's bad feeling grew when she felt magic returning to the air around here, somehow bleeding out through the light. She felt a pretty, magic-giving light should be a good thing, but Bec couldn't shake her rising unease.

"I felt the magic of your spell, so I-" Bec started to say, only to be cut off by the woman.

"You foolish girl!" spittle fly from the woman's mouth as she shouted, her earlier pleasant voice distorting with unpleasant emotion. "Leave now, before you can't!" The woman's eyes were wild now, glittering with the yellow and blue light.

Bec took a step back towards the door, eyes remaining on this Priestess. She called forth several spells in her mind, just to be ready in case there was any danger. Her voice trembled slightly as she responded, "I'm sorry, I just..."

Sounds were coming from the blue patch of light. The woman turned her wide eyes to it, hissing slightly. "Too late. You foolish, foolish girl. It's too late for you now. You will be among the first to fall."

Bec stared at the light too, feeling her muscles begin to tense. Something was very wrong here. _That light... What is it?_ She opened her mouth to speak.

Before she could utter a single peep, shapes were pouring from the light. Bec couldn't believe her eyes as she saw them. Demonata were coming through the light. It was a _window!_ The Priestess had opened a window into the Demonata Universe!

Three snarling beasts clambered through first, sniffing the air as if to taste the new area. More demons followed. There were so many, and they kept coming. There were large ones, small ones, tall ones, long ones. That one had the arms of a gorilla and the body of a salamander, another laid low to the ground with scaled claws and feet, bearing the beak of a bird. There were grotesque monstrosities too, oozing blood or fluid, salivating over jagged and broken fangs. In no time, the entire room was filled with Demonata.

Bec gaped at them, not understanding how this could have happened. Surely this was another nightmare, and she would be waking up in her bed at the Saotome home.

Alas, that wasn't so. The woman was still there, holding a hand towards the window to the Demonata Universe. The demons themselves had finished their inspections, and one by one they all turned towards Bec. Blood thirsty grins and baring of fangs followed, beady eyes, fiery eyes, even empty sockets all fixed on her.

Bec gulped.

The first abomination roared, a breathy sound more like a rumbling shriek. The others followed suit with snorts, grunts, growls, and menacing war cries. They began clawing their way forward towards her.

Bec balled her fists tightly, mouth shutting and forming a tight line. She didn't go through that hellish quest, descend the nightmarish cave to the heart of where the Tunnel rested, resist Demonata and Lord Loss both, and survive the events of the sacrifice and the following collapse of the Tunnel only to die here, at the hands of these... these...

Bec couldn't think of the proper word in her mounting fury, literally shaking in anger. She had closed that damned Tunnel, the path to it forged in the blood of her friends. This Priestess would not make that sacrifice moot.

The words came unbidden now, and all Bec had to do was open her mouth. Immediately incantations sprang from her tongue, snarled in her wrath. The numbers could overwhelm her of course, but she would not be put down easily.

The head of the closest demon exploded abruptly at her first spell, showering the rest in a spray of green blood that sizzled on their hides and carapaces like acid. They shrieked in pain and fury, charging fully now.

More spells spilled from her. Bec's fingernails hardened and extended like spears, impaling those before her. Another word broke them from her hand, leaving the shafts buried inside the Demonata. A ball of flame flew from her hand into the mouth of a demon no doubt about to spit a gout of acidic bile at her, and the flames ignited the fluid inside the demon, causing it's neck and chest to explode in another spray of inhuman gore.

One them succeeded in launching a projectile at her – a sharpened bone – and Bec deflected it with a word. She returned favor by having the tiles of the floor rip free, reshape into spikes, and send volleys of those back at the demons – a three spell combo of hers she had favored, though usually with rocks.

The tile spikes were more of a hindrance than a tool of butchery, and already the first Demonata had crawled over its dead comrades to reach her.

Bec had remained in shape since her arrival to this time. She dodged its vicious swipe and stepped in close to it, one hand coming up to the demon's wolfish muzzle. A phrase turned her hand blue, and upon touching the Demonata's head it froze solid. Bec ripped the appendage off entirely and chucked it back towards the next closest demon, barking a spell that shattered the frozen head into shards that brutalized the next.

She leapt over the dead Demonata to reach the next, bringing a hand to her mouth to exhale a sudden stream of white near a twin-headed monster's dual jaws. The mist slipped inside the mouths, and a moment later they began choking. Their limbs flailed, obstructing other demons attempting to reach her, and those only trampled it to reach her.

Bec wasn't done yet.

Her left hand's nails hardened and elongated into blades. She used the claws to deflect their attacks at her and inflict what damage she could. With the right hand she continued her barrage of spells. A touch to one burly demon's barreled chest caused it to erupt from the inside, a mess of innards spilling out before it collapsed.

A short spell of granting extraordinary strength allowed Bec to pull a demon apart between her two arms. She saw she had punched a pocket of space around her and used the time to explode another couple of heads before jumping back into the fray.

One vicious spell had maggots form in a demon's single large eye and began eating inward, the blinded beast tramping around in agony and attacking a nearby ally in its rage. Bec picked up a severed claw from one of the demons and barked the spell that would reshape it into a short sword. Between that in her right hand and the claws of her left, she began the true dirty work.

Bec was a flurry of motion as she slashed and hacked apart the demons, using spells when hides were too tough to penetrate. Her vision was filled with snapping fangs, swiping claws, and spraying blood. The horrors filled her vision in the yellow and blue light, everywhere she looked, and she fought against it all with everything she had.

She felt _alive_ as she showed the Demonata no remorse, the same they had intended to show her. She couldn't escape the fray entirely unharmed, and she knew the demons had scored on her arms and legs, one managed an ugly bite in the meat of her side. Still, she wasn't dead, so she fought on. The lust for their blood took her, and she sated it generously.

As the next demon fell, the sword planted in its chest and the claws dragging up and through its neck in a ragged beheading, Bec spun to find the next foe. Her vision focused past the blooded carcasses, gristly and terrifying. She found nothing behind her and quickly swept her eyes to the sides. Nothing moved.

She realized the only sounds she could hear were her own heavy breathing and the low hum of the window. Bec panted, eyes checking those on the ground more carefully, suspicious of foul play. Finding nothing, her eyes turned towards the window. The woman was still there, pressed against the wall in fear.

"What... are you?" she asked, pretty face etched in horror and awe.

Bec stepped carefully over dead demons, realizing that at some time the heels Nodoka had given her had come off during the fight. Her bare feet avoided puddles of blood, in an array of colors, until they brought her to just before the woman. She didn't deserve the title of Priestess.

_What are you,_ the woman had asked. Bec's cold blue eyes bore into her dark ones. "I am the wrong girl to cross." She plunged the blade inside the woman's chest and twisted it once.

The woman gaped at her, letting out a low moan of pain. Bec whipped the blade out, discarding it to the ground. She watched the woman bleed in lethal amounts, still staring at her with wide eyes. She slowly began sliding down the wall, one hand coming up to the wound. She was still staring as she came to the ground, lips beginning to move without sound. Bec watched until she stilled. The window beside her began to shrink and vanished.

Bec spat to the side, turning on her heel to leave the room. The fight now over, the pain of her wounds hit her, and she hissed. One hand came to the gushing gouge on her side, and she whimpered slightly. She needed to be patched up.

She reached the door to the room and opened it. A small crowd had gathered outside it, causing Bec to blink. They all recoiled at the sight of her, clothes torn and bloody. Bec only limped forward, and they parted for her. She didn't look back to see them peaking into the room, filled with the corpses of the Demonata, but she heard their gasps and the sound of a woman fainting.

As she left the building back to the streets, limping and bloody and only gaining stares from passersby, Bec bared her teeth in a humorless grin. Here she was, trying to stay away from the problems, calling it not her fight, and she had been pulled right back into it.

With the loss of adrenaline, her hands began shaking, the fear and tension of it coming up to such a toll that her nerves began acting up. She hated that feeling. She hated the Demonata, hated using magic to fight and destroy, hated needing to be the hero. She had done her part, why couldn't she have been left alone?

But there was something else there too. During the fight, with the song of adrenaline pounding in her ears and her mind driven to the primal emotion of bloodlust, there had been so much excitement. She had _enjoyed_ it, and Bec knew it. She would be coming back to that, the desperate pitch of battle where it was either her life or theirs.

Ranma had come to Nodoka's home after he had found a place of his own. He had left his new address. Bec decided that after she properly bandaged herself, she would go find him. She couldn't sit on the sidelines anymore, no matter how much she wished otherwise. She just couldn't force herself anymore.

Bec was coming back to the action.

XxX

"As fun as that was watching you hold one sided conversations and do things at suggestions we couldn't hear," Crystal mentioned as they left the village, "it was indeed quite strange, Ranma. I apologize, but I am glad to be leaving."

The queen had returned the fur blanket to the Urgoks, so she resumed her earlier place in attaching herself to Ranma's side for warmth. This time, however, she also included Setsuna into the mix, keeping the tanned woman as a cover for her right side. Ranma and Setsuna exchanged amused looks at Crystal's actions.

The Space Keeper walked as a shadow at a measured pace behind them.

"No problem," Ranma shrugged. "Probably takes some time getting used to. So the plan from here is to head back and get Kresh and some hunters to gate to Earth." And he would start working out how to use magic to redirect forces, thanks to Adafild. "Anything else before then?"

Setsuna bit a lip at that. "There is something."

By her hesitation alone, Crystal got an idea of what Setsuna meant. "It is something from the letter, isn't it?"

The Keeper of Time nodded once, and her crimson eyes flashed once at Ranma before looking away. "It recommends that the four of us make a visit to Crystal Tokyo before returning."

Ranma turned to Setsuna, seeing her not quite meeting his eyes. "What's Crystal Tokyo?"

Crystal, still shivering from the cold as they walked, frowned. "It was an abomination, a violation of justice and the balance between Chaos and Order, under the ruse of a utopia. It is a kingdom that called for the complete purging of evil and chaos, leaving only peace and stability – and a population incapable of opposition and thus without freewill. It was an idea that should have died with my coming, Time Keeper, so please explain how it could still remain a possibility."

"I do not know, Serenity-sama," Setsuna muttered quietly. "With the ban on my powers, I have not been able to open the Gates of Time to see for myself."

"Wait a second, a kingdom where chaos is purged?" Ranma asked. As the Chaos Generator, that held a slight significance to himself. "How is that even possible? Who would do such a thing?"

Crystal stared hard at Setsuna, who remained stone faced and facing forward. "He needs to be told, Setsuna."

They had gone far enough from the village, and the group of them stopped. Still Setsuna remained silent, until she simply nodded once. It was a firm gesture, and she turned her full attention to Ranma, meeting his gaze unflinchingly. "It is possible using the Ginzuisho. Before I knew you, before I properly realized the significance of chaos, I found the possibility of Crystal Tokyo in the time streams. I pushed for it, increased its likelihood, and convinced the other Senshi that it was the best future. Selene's reincarnation would have turned it into a reality."

"Which is why it is no longer a possibility, because I have replaced my daughter. I will not willfully abuse my power in such a way as to create that dreadful manifestation of a close-minded idea. On top of being a perversion of what _is_, it is not something for one to decide for the many." Crystal's sharp reprimand would have left a stronger impact if it hadn't been wracked with shivering and her clutching Ranma and Setsuna both.

Xycell reminded them of his presence as he glided forward to them. His expressionless face held a certain intensity as he stared at Setsuna, the look very nearly a glare with his nightmarish red eyes surrounded by black. "You would dare violate the laws so blatantly, counterpart? The Time Keeper has always held looser obligations to her duty, but this... imprudent humanitarian ideology, as if your interests were to them instead of to Time, is beyond anything I've heard before. The Order Generator has done well to place a ban on your abilities. She is generous not to have stripped you of your position entirely."

Setsuna's own crimson eyes met his with cool resolve. "It was a mistake made in ignorance, and I have accepted my punishment for it." She glanced at Ranma again, but her eyes quickly shied back to Crystal. "Regardless, the letter ensures me of its continued existence. Perhaps it would be best as to see why?"

Ranma felt a tad detached from the conversation, still trying to wrap his mind around the idea that _Setsuna_ had supported. Other than the times he violated them, he knew very little of the laws governing Time and Space. Still, to completely purge Chaos... What would happen to him?

Queen Serenity was more than sure that she would not allow Crystal Tokyo to ever happen. However, if what Setsuna had said was true... She needed to know how that could happen. "I support the idea of going."

Ranma followed her example, still unsure as to what this Crystal Tokyo would mean for him.

Xycell was silent a moment longer, watching Setsuna. His pasty white knuckles curled around his Stasis Scepter until they popped, but he too nodded. "I must see why the Space Keeper allowed this to happen." He had his suspicions, however.

Once it was decided, Crystal, still covered in goosebumps and shivering, took the Garnet Rod with numb fingers, muttered something quickly, and gave it back to Setsuna. The elder Senshi accepted it and opened a pathway to the Time Gates. They entered.

XxX

There were a few natural issues getting there as Ranma's Chaos met the very bastion of Time, but with Crystal's help, Setsuna was able to open the pathway to the future and the surviving possibility of Crystal Tokyo.

The courtyard they appeared in was familiar. In a wide path, surrounded by columns and twin pools of water with fountains, bricks of shimmering crystal led straight to the palace. Where white walls and golden domes had been earlier was now that same crystal, this time opaque. It was almost an exact replica of the Lunar Palace, only made of crystal. The place earned its name.

Crystal gave it all a hard eye, trying not to allow the sight so similar to her kingdom to affect her. She was going to have quite a few words with herself about what she had done, not reminisce on what she had lost. Behind her, Ranma was tense, no doubt expecting an attack due to his nature. Setsuna stood stoically beside the Space Keeper, whom examined everything with what could have been curiosity if his facial features altered.

Before they could move even a step forward, the palace's milky doors burst open, revealing a woman in a flowing gown standing next to a well-dressed man. If one didn't notice the tiara or crown, there was no doubt they were the Queen and King by how they held themselves. The woman stood there calmly, watching them with emotionless eyes. The man saw the group before him and stepped closer to the Queen, putting a hand on his sheathed sword.

The reaction from their group of four varied upon sighting the duo. Crystal only narrowed her eyes, the pieces falling into place with a mental click. Next to her, Setsuna all but gaped, her lips parting in a silent gasp. On Crystal's other side, Ranma frowned, his hand resting on his scythe to match the King's. The Space Keeper barely seemed interested, but he did nod to himself as if expecting this.

The Queen was sheathed tightly in a black dress in a way that highlighted her curves, much like how Crystal had worn her own when she had been Queen of the Moon Kingdom. Whereas Crystal's had topped with a bow clasped by a crescent moon before her chest, the Queen's neckline ended high up the neck. To make up for it, she did wear a silver amulet with a large garnet just above her breasts. The shoulders of the gown flared stiffly, and the black cloth clung tightly all the way down to her wrists, where it ended in stiff, open sleeves. Bracelets of woven silver and imbedded garnets matched the amulet perfectly, as did the embellished tiara resting perfectly on well groomed and uniquely styled hair. Tan skin, crimson eyes, and green hair in a braided bun marked the current Queen as Setsuna. Her Garnet Rod was held as a symbol of power, planted in the ground before her.

The man was unexpected but not a surprise, all things considered. A lavender tuxedo, perfect match for the business suit Setsuna wore as a Student Counselor in the present, was unbuttoned to show the silk white undershirt with a crimson bowtie. A cape of darker purple on the back and lighter on the front was wrapped around one shoulder and was flipped back on the other to leave the sword arm clear. His white mask gave away more than it concealed. Endymion stood by her side as King.

Ranma coughed into the tense silence. "Setsuna and Earth Boy. Never saw that coming."

Crystal almost laughed, but she held herself back at the last second. It wouldn't be appropriate, but the man certainly had a way with tension.

"I've been expecting you," the future Setsuna called out to them, her voice cool and mysterious. And only one part cliché. "Provided that the Chaos Generator keeps close with the Order Generator, you are welcomed here as guests. Crystal, please remain in physical contact with him for the duration."

Crystal recognized the insult of her using her first name. Obviously she and Setsuna didn't see eye-to-eye over Crystal Tokyo, but whatever made this possible must have involved a falling out between her and her Time Keeper. She frowned, preparing to question this Queen Meioh on the matter.

A hand enveloped hers, stopping her short, and gave a gentle squeeze. She recognized the feel of Ranma's heavy hands, carefully restraining his strength, and glanced at him. He had a small smile. "She wants our abilities to cancel out. As guests, we should respect her wishes."

He was cautioning her to wait. Perhaps he was right. This wasn't the best time to confront her. Crystal allowed herself to smile back at him and nod. They would play this Queen's game for now.

The future Setsuna, seeing that, said, "Now, if you would follow me." She turned on her heel and gracefully began gliding inside without looking back. The King didn't hesitate a beat before turning and walking by her side, hand no longer on his sword.

_Well, she's certainly haughty enough to be a queen,_ Crystal huffed. Instead of immediately leaping at the woman's command, she took her time rearranged her arm so that she and Ranma were linked at the elbows, as was more proper, while he himself turned to their Setsuna. The green haired woman was still shocked by what she had seen.

"So, you and Endymion?" Ranma asked, a grin in his voice. Crystal also glanced at her.

Setsuna shook her head, surprise turning into a frown. "I have never considered the man beyond the fact that he wouldn't die of age. If anything, I would much rather-" She broke off suddenly, a blush tinging her cheeks noticeable even with her tan. She didn't quite look at Ranma like that, but to anyone who wasn't outrageously oblivious (read: Ranma), it was obvious where she had been heading with that.

Crystal found the scene cute, but she felt they shouldn't keep Queen Meioh waiting much longer. They had gotten their point across that they were not her subjects. They began trailing the future duo, slowly climbing the crystal stairs and entering the palace.

"The area is thick with Order, much like the Lunar Palace had been. It would have taken centuries to build up this amount," the Space Keeper rumbled quietly, face impassive as he studied the hallway. "Perhaps a millennium."

Which meant that at least this future Setsuna hadn't disposed of her. Ranma on the other hand... For one reason or another, he wasn't still around here. Crystal glanced at him, seeing his stormy blue eyes watching the illuminated blue strip near the ceiling of the hallway that followed them to the throne room.

They had brought back a security system from the Moon Kingdom, known as Security Tape. It was Mercurial technology, a powerful defense against whatever it perceived as threats. They had been invited inside this Crystal Palace, but with Ranma's general chaotic history, it wouldn't be unreasonable for it to suddenly act up against him.

"You may relax," Crystal said to him. "You are without Chaos presently. The probability of it mistakenly activating are insubstantial, even for yourself."

Ranma shook his head, a wry grin on his face. "You've never been on the receiving end of it before." His gaze moved back ahead of him, towards the open doors leading to the throne room. "Besides, it ain't the chance of it glitching that I'm worried about. It's if _isn't_ mistaken when it activates, and we need to get out."

If Queen Meioh turned it against them while they were inside, he meant. Crystal grew a chill at that, considering the possibility. The defenses weren't very threatening to them, but they certainly were hindering. If this was a trap for disposing Ranma, perhaps as a step for establishing this Crystal Tokyo...

They entered the throne room.

It painfully resembled the Lunar Palace, again with crystal in place of marble. The supporting columns were all the same, including the engraved designs, all the way to the domed ceiling. The sound of their footsteps echoed in the chamber as they walked to the center of the room, where the thrones in place held the same intimidating presence they had when it had been Queen Serenity as ruler.

The Crystal Thrones, however, were two massive constructs. The material swirled with colors both opaque and transparent, what had to be two tons worth for each one. There were no distinctions between the two of them, yet the future Setsuna was seated in the left crystal monster while Endymion sat upon the right.

On either side of those thrones were seven others, respectable in their own rights yet only composed of wood and gilt. At the head of each of those were seven planets. Earth, Pluto, and Nemesis were excluded. Endymion and Setsuna's covered the first two, which left Ranma the only Senshi without a representative seat. Half of those were occupied currently by grown women, recognizable as the present Sailor Scouts.

Crystal observed each person in the room, detaching herself from emotion as she did so. None of them looked very happy to see her or the others, and they lacked the skill to mask their expressions completely. Anxiety seemed to dominate, with a faint trace of... anger? Disdain? Some form of hostility, at least.

She tightened her hold on Ranma's arm, feeling the coiled tension within him, and spoke, "Greetings Time Keeper, King Endymion, Senshi." She nodded to each group, then returned her attention to Setsuna. "I presume you know why we are here?"

Queen Meioh seemed well at place on her throne, with all the proper bearing of a queen. "I do. I gathered those whom you will wish to speak to as well." She flicked her hand towards her right, where the Outers had there thrones lined. "Lady Uranus, please peacefully oblige the former Space Keeper. Lady Saturn, please escort Crystal to where her counterpart currently rests. I trust you to make sure the Chaos Generator remains unobtrusive."

Hotaru, now a woman, nodded once. There was a haunted look to her as she gazed at Ranma, but there was also a hard cast to her purple eyes that surprised Crystal. She didn't doubt the use of lethal force might be used if Ranma separated from her. Properly trained, the wielder of Silence could indeed maim or kill him, assuming he was even willing to fight back.

Crystal regarded the green haired woman on the throne coolly. "I wish to speak to you as well, Setsuna."

The woman leaned back at the insult – if she wouldn't observe equal courtesy between queen's, then Crystal wouldn't either – and her calm crimson eyes appeared to dismiss Crystal. "You are not my concern, nor I, yours." Those eyes, ancient and without emotion, moved to her counterpart. Her lips turned up in a slight smile. "You are, my dear, ignorant past self."

Behind her, Crystal could hear Setsuna shift in place.

The Queen stood, beginning to descend the steps of her throne with a predatory grace, eyes still locked on Setsuna's. "If you would follow me, we shall speak privately. The rest, I leave you to your fancy."

Hotaru and Uranus rose from their thrones, also moving towards their group. Crystal was surprised to see the Stasis Scepter in Uranus's hand. It was no wonder she would be speaking with the Space Keeper.

Hotaru, dressed in a purple gown that she filled rather nicely with her soft feminine curves, reached them. Her Silence Glaive was held in one hand. "Follow me please." She turned and began to walk towards the eastern wing of the palace.

Ranma moved to follow, but Crystal turned to Setsuna before they could. "Time Keeper mine, do remain cautious."

Queen Meioh raised an eyebrow at her, but Setsuna nodded once. That was all Crystal needed to see. She turned back to Hotaru, seeing the woman still walking, and together with Ranma she began to follow. It was time to see why exactly she had allowed this future to come to pass, and how Setsuna had come to the throne.

XxX

During the Silver Millennium, Setsuna had been inside Queen Serenity's living quarters only once. She knew where it was located, and she knew immediately that it was where her future self was leading her.

The queen was silent as they walked, eyes forward and simply expecting her to follow. Which she did, without much choice. She still had the sinking feeling inside her stomach, seeing this twisted version of the future she once devoted her entire self to.

As they reached the double-doors that led to the queen's bedchamber, Setsuna plucked the emotions from her voice and said, "This is not Crystal Tokyo as we once strove for. This is not a product of the purification by Ginzuisho, nor is the purging of Chaos done unnaturally."

Queen Meioh – how Setsuna loathed the very name – opened the doors and said without looking back, "No, it's not as we had striven for. This is the Crystal Tokyo we _designed_."

Setsuna followed her inside, and the queen closed the doors behind her. The room was laid out entirely different from how Queen Serenity's had been. The woman had never been showy, but she had lived comfortably. This room, instead, was styled much like Setsuna's back at home. It looked simple and unassuming, yet she knew that each item within would be handpicked and deceptively luxurious. It was themed dark red, very stylishly so, and the only thing that seemed out of place was the lavender tuxedo jacket hanging from the back of a chair.

She wanted to ask about that, her apparent relationship with the Terran Prince, yet she only said, "Designed?"

Queen Meioh moved around her, black swathed form moving to the large bed and sitting down. The woman faced her, a knowing grin on her red painted lips. "The original Crystal Tokyo was a fool's idea, you know that now. It violated the laws. It caused things like the terrorizing planet Nemesis as the universe tried correcting itself. It just wouldn't work. This, however, violates no laws. This Crystal Tokyo, as I designed – and you one day shall – keeps the people protected peacefully and the laws upheld."

Setsuna, leaning against her Garnet Rod, raised an eyebrow at her. "How did you manage that? And what, exactly, do the people need protecting from?"

Crimson eyes bore into crimson, the queen's stare gaining a sudden intensity. "I managed it through _necessity,_ my dear, ignorant self. You honestly have no idea what you are in for, just as I didn't when I had stood so blissfully ignorant before myself – like you are now."

"You keep repeating 'ignorance' because you know how much I, and I suppose you, hate the word," Setsuna remarked. "So why don't you just fill me in. It's why I'm here, is it not? To warn me of what's to come?"

Her future self smiled again. There was no joy in it. "Indeed." She stood abruptly and walked two paces over to a nightstand. She knelt – no easy feat in that dress – and opened the bottom drawer, reaching into the back to retrieve a locked box.

The queen returned to her seat on the bed with the box, producing a key from a hidden pocket. She spoke as she opened it, "You are here because the letter told you to come. It tells you because you need to be warned of the future yet are blinded by the ban Crystal placed on your abilities. By the time the ban runs true, the world would already have been destroyed."

Setsuna had opened her mouth to inquire after why she spoke about Queen Serenity in such a way, but she stopped short. "Destroyed? We have Ranma, his Urgoks, the Senshi, Serenity-sama herself even. What could possibly overcome us in five years?"

The woman shrugged, setting her box aside with the lid ajar. "You would have lasted three years because of him. Long enough to train the Senshi into powerful weapons each, more so once they regained their memories at twenty years of age. The world would only be down to the survivors by then, when the Senshi regain their memories, yet that day would be the greatest counterattack. Even so, it was futile, and everyone died. Except us, of course." There was a bitter smile. "We get returned to the Time Gates for all eternity again, this time without leave."

"How would you know this?" Setsuna asked.

"Once things settled down here, I went back to view the time stream where Crystal refused letting you read the letter."

"You've avoided my question. What is this threat? What could overcome us in three years?"

Smiling, the queen broke her rigidity to lean back on her arms, laying her Garnet Rod across the bedsheets next to the box. One leg crossed over the other under her dress, the impressions obvious in the tight material. "I always detested being in the dark about something."

Setsuna's fingers tightened over her staff, but she kept her frustration in check. "The Setsuna you met could not have been this irritating when you were in my place."

Her future self laughed at that, a completely natural – and relieved – sound. "Oh, you would be surprised. Relax yourself, we have time. The times are rare when I can be open with someone." She sighed then, smile slipping away. "This Crystal Tokyo is the utopia we had always hoped for, but the path to it is not pleasant one."

"I gathered as much," Setsuna deadpanned. "Why don't you explain it, starting with the threat?"

"The Demonata," the woman replied simply, though her expression darkened. "They are worse than you realize."

"How so?"

"You think the worst that can happen is that they cross a Demon Master over. That if they do, humanity is lost. What you don't realize is that crossing a master over is only one method of many. You think there is someone trying to convince humans to open windows to the Demonata universe, which is true, but what you don't realize is that whatever it is isn't even _in_ our own universe."

She leaned forward, eyes smoldering with old rage. "Their universe isn't like ours. It isn't just one plane with planets, systems, galaxies, all reachable from each other. It is made of pockets, dimensions within dimensions, planes besides planes. It isn't ruled by the Laws of Space and Time or physics, but by _magic._ It takes magic to travel there, to survive – and that's excluding the infinite Demonata trying to kill you the entire meanwhile. How do you find _one mastermind_ in all of that?"

The queen was nearly shouting near the end, and Setsuna weathered it stoically. There was something personal in that, a certain insistence on the impossibility of it. Much like as if she was still trying to convince, or justify, herself. And that made some things come together for Setsuna.

"You didn't believe we could find and stop whomever is behind this, so you enacted this Crystal Tokyo," Setsuna commented.

The woman on the bed closed her eyes and answered simply, "Yes." She opened her eyes, a perfect mirror of Setsuna's own, and the regret in them was obvious. "I tried so hard to believe otherwise, as you will. I wanted to believe this wouldn't be necessary, that we could stop them and everything would be alright in the end. I know you fancy... Ranma still, because I did back then. It hurt so much to do it, but you will need to put humanity before your own heart in order to save it. And accept the consequences."

Setsuna didn't blush, but she didn't deny her own words. She remained indifferent. "What did you do to him?"

While Queen Meioh still showed regret for her decision, she had had nearly a millennium to justify her actions to herself. With that amount of reasoning and time-blurred influence, she admitted the fact blithely and freely, "I killed him." A bolt of cold suddenly shot through Setsuna. "But that isn't the whole of it, dearest past self, only part of the pain."

"Explain," Setsuna demanded. She credited herself on how her voice didn't shake.

The queen's eyes were sad as they met hers, and she held out her hands to either side. "The great Crystal Tokyo. For a demon to cross into our universe is a violent, bloody, and chaotic affair. To remove Chaos is to remove the possibility of a crossing, of the influence reaching into our universe to convince someone to orchestrate it. The plan was to send Ranma away and keep Crystal, so that she could spread her Order over the planet like she had the Moon and eliminate the Chaos, while Ranma would remain in a place where his Chaos couldn't enhance the probability of a crossing – such as the Urgok home world.

"Instead, Crystal opposed the idea vehemently, as she always did. And while I took no pleasure in it, I acquired a drug that would induce a nourished, dreamless sleep for her. I will not deny the fact: she exists merely as a well-treated captive. Ranma, when he realized what I had done, vowed to free her. I begged him to simply leave, so that I could free Crystal – there is little she could have done once he was gone – but he and his damn honor refused."

"How did you kill him?" Setsuna asked quietly. Training or not, in a fair fight Ranma could beat all the Senshi at the same time. He would have torn through them to free Queen Serenity.

"Hotaru... Hotaru, our dear, sweet daughter, went to him on my word. She begged him again to leave. When he again refused, she killed him. As you know, he wouldn't raise a hand against her." The woman paused for a second to wipe at an eye, but her face was too stoney for it to be a tear. "The girl hasn't been the same since. I hold no illusions that we are fault for his death and her change.

"The Space Keeper, surprisingly, reacted violently. The day after Ranma's death, he came. The man... It was the first time I had seen him _fight._ It was a slaughter. Michiru, Minako, Rei, Makoto... Haruka's Space Sword, however, made her immune to his abilities, and she was able to end him too. She became the next Space Keeper as well."

_What kind of future is this?_ Setsuna asked herself, horrified. _Why did the letter want me to see this? This can't be the only path._

There were no more smiles as Queen Meioh stared at her, all emotion having left her visage. "The Senshi are immortal of course, all save Senshi Nemesis, so they were reborn. Crystal's Order began to spread. The crossings, originally concentrated in Juuban due to Ranma's Chaos, began to dwindle as planned. Senshi Mercury, with her memories, stabilized the dying Earth. The Order mellowed out the powers of Earth, and we brought them together under one government. Crystal Tokyo. Peace. The last attempted crossing was over 200 years ago."

And she was right in that no laws were violated. But what a method to go about it! The woman before her was a monster. Setsuna shook her head at the conclusion of her speech, unable to believe that what she had just heard had come from herself. "What about the Moon Kingdom's fall? The original, before Ranma ever interfered? Serenity-sama's Order protected it, but still Queen Metaria brought it down violently and _chaotically."_

The queen before her shook her head. "Queen Metaria was... a different sort of evil. An Incarnate. She wasn't restricted to the same rules we are. Order and Chaos didn't hold the same meaning to her."

Setsuna stood there in denial, wracking her mind for an example how _easily_ this woman could have chosen a better path. Her future self laughed at her, bitterly. She reached into the box she had extracted before and pulled something out. It was the letter, the very same Setsuna's past self had written for her – to help guide her towards a future where humanity survived.

As she did, there was a burst of light around Queen Meioh, and her formal black dress was replaced by the _fuku_ of Senshi Pluto. With the letter in one hand, Garnet Rod in the other, she stood from the bed and faced Setsuna. "I was once exactly like you. I once read this letter and told the others to come visit Crystal Tokyo, where I met my future self exactly as you do now. I heard the monstrous things she had done, denied that it could be the only way."

Her crimson eyes burned with intensity, though her face remained expressionless and calm. "I did everything you did and will. I tried fighting this future. I followed every instruction and learned every fact written in this letter, and it all led to only one place. This Crystal Tokyo."

Her words turned cold. "You'll know, when you see the first Hunter dead and realize that your side isn't as invincible as you thought. When you are standing in the hospital after two friends are brought to the very brink of death. When Yuka lies cold on the ground before you, dead because you trusted her to handle a threat alone. And when you are watching the streams of refugees leaving Juuban, leaving behind their homes and lives to escape certain death, you'll know then that what I say is true, that all your fighting the inevitable has been for nothing. You'll act then, and you will save humanity at the cost of your own."

Setsuna stared at her, at loss for words. She stared at herself, further battered by time and bad experiences. The letter she held, it was exactly the same Setsuna now also held. The woman was herself – _herself! -_ and would have tried _everything_ she herself would. The woman had been told in this same way, and tried to the best of her abilities, as Setsuna had so firmly promised herself, to prevent this future.

How could one deny such ugly evidence? With her holding that letter, wearing the same _fuku_ she herself did, holding the same Garnet Rod... The woman across from her was Setsuna Meioh, Keeper of Time – not just some snobbish queen – and she had done everything she herself would, to do what was both _right_ and what was _best._

She began shaking her head. It started slowly, then worked its way up to a violent denial that hurt her neck. She wouldn't- _couldn't_ give up without trying. It may or may not be inevitable, but she would, to the very utmost of her power, attempt to make a better future. One where she didn't kill Ranma, imprison Queen Serenity, enrage the Space Keeper into killing her friends before murdering him too, and most importantly one where humanity didn't succumb to the Demonata or anything similar.

She faced herself with resolve, fist clenched tightly over her own Garnet Rod. "I won't accept this future."

Queen Setsuna Meioh smiled at her, genuinely pleased. "I know."

"I will prevent this," Setsuna continued.

"You will try," her future self countered gently, "to the very best of your ability. And in that, I wish you luck."

_And I will not fail,_ Setsuna finished, opposing the unspoken 'but' at the end of her sentence. They were done here, she presumed, so she asked, "Where are the others?"

Queen Setsuna Meioh regarded her without heat, without any form of arrogance or knowing tease. She faced her as an equal, as all Setsuna's had to their past and future selves. "Your Crystal and Ranma have gone with Hotaru to visit where our Order Generator sleeps. I have instructed Lady Saturn to explain this future to them, as I have to you. Xycell should be in the courtyard with Lady Uranus, whom I asked to answer all his questions honestly."

Both Setsuna's hesitated for a moment, a silence filling the bedchamber. Then, the queen walked over to her. She kissed either of Setsuna's cheeks and grabbed her by the shoulders, staring into her eyes emphatically. She whispered, "It will be the most painful decision you ever make, but I promise, _promise_ the pain fades in time. Endymion may not be our ideal man, but he helped me heal from the worst of it. The man is loyal and loving, and currently, in your time, he is hurting dearly from losing Usagi."

Before Setsuna could respond to that, her future self spun her and began guiding her out the door.

XxX

Setsuna rejoined Ranma and Queen Serenity in the throne room, and with a final parting word they began to leave. They collected the Space Keeper, and once the four of them were together, Setsuna returned them back through the Time Gates.

Once they were standing on the proper side, Queen Serenity sighed, one hand coming to her head as if with a headache. "I do not believe such a future is very likely. The theory behind it is sound, but... something felt off about it. The surreality of a faint possible future. Time Keeper, please reseal the Gates of Time."

Quickly, Setsuna glanced inside the Gates as she moved to close them. She cast her intent towards the new Crystal Tokyo, demanding the probability. The doors to the Gates began closing, and Setsuna immediately got her answer. She exhaled in pained surprise. Queen Serenity was wrong.

Nearly half the possible futures were that Crystal Tokyo.

At the speed of thought, Setsuna shifted her intent, demanding the other possibilities. Without specifics, she was given them individually. Destruction, destruction, destruction, destruction, destruction... The list went on, brief images of death and fire, of ruined cities and demon infested lands. The Time Gates closed, shutting off the images.

Setsuna knew she had gone through barely a portion of the other possibilities, nearly infinite number of those, but they were grouped by similarity and then randomized from there. Nearly half were Crystal Tokyo, and nearly half were destruction. She wrenched her eyes shut, gripping her Garnet Rod tightly in both hands, feeling a sudden urge to cry.

The possibility was slim, but there was still a chance she could change things. There had to be.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, and she stiffened suddenly. Opening her eyes, noticing the slight blur from unshed tears, and she saw Queen Serenity standing there, looking at her with concern. "Setsuna, are you alright?"

Setsuna forced it back, forced back the tears, the future, the decisions, the possibility of such pain. She focused on her resolve, remembered the steely determination Ranma often displayed, and she faced Crystal with a perfect mask of indifference. "I am fine, Serenity-sama." She held out her Garnet Rod, feeling the ache in her fingers as they finally uncurled. "I assume you wish to return the ban on my abilities."

Crystal studied her for a few more moments, wanting to be sure she was alright, then nodded slowly. "Return us to Earth, then I will. For two years, you will be without access and control of Time."

Setsuna blinked at her in surprise. Two years, shortened from five. After everything Queen Serenity had just seen and heard, of Setsuna herself _imprisoning_ her, the woman was _trusting_ her – trusting her to do her proper duty as Time Keeper.

The silver haired woman smiled at Setsuna's reaction, nodding once to confirm it. She gave Setsuna's shoulder a comforting squeeze, then released it and stepped back.

Setsuna smiled back at her, then accessed her power to open a portal back to Juuban, specifically the roof of the building they had originally left from. Crystal took her symbol of power and again invoked the ban over it, but this time Setsuna felt none of the loss or dismay as it was returned.

"Hey, Xycell," Ranma said suddenly, bringing their attention to him. The man, dressed in his red and black Moon Kingdom clothing, scythe sheathed on his back, was staring up at the night sky with a frown. His right hand rested over the tattoo hidden on his left shoulder. "There seems to be a barrier or something preventing Kresh and the Hunters from gating here."

The Space Keeper tilted his head to the side – his version of a blink of surprise – then glanced up at the sky as well. After a few moments, his mask-like face gave a hum. "It appears there is a barrier of some kind, magical in origin, designed to keep demons from passing through. Come with me, I'll take you where the barrier is weakest and open a hole so your familiar may pass through."

Ranma thanked him, and the ancient man space traveled away with him. Setsuna watched as the blue apparitions – their ki – were expelled from their bodies and flung out of eyesight. There was a half a heartbeat as their bodies froze unnaturally, then whipped after the ki faster than the eye could properly track.

That left Setsuna on the roof with Queen Serenity, and a silence gathered as they both stared after where Ranma and the Space Keeper had vanished off to. Eventually, the younger girl turned a smile to Setsuna. "That man is like a whirlwind of motion sometimes, always off to new and exciting places." She winked at her. "Good luck with him, if you finally work the courage to ask courtship."

Setsuna felt her cheeks grow warm. She didn't deny it though. Instead, she asked, "You aren't interested in him?"

The woman's smile widened, glancing back towards where Ranma had disappeared off to. "Interested? A man like that, it's hard _not_ to be." One hand came up to her chest. "But I'm afraid the giving of my heart might be a one time thing." After two years, she still hurt from losing Ryu, Setsuna realized.

If Queen Serenity wasn't going to pursue Ranma, then Setsuna felt she actually had a good chance of being with him. But of course, now she had to consider if attempting would only make it that much more painful when she killed him...

_I will not fail._

XxX

_I agreed wholeheartedly with Crystal on the surreality of that Crystal Tokyo. Shy, quiet, 'couldn't hurt a fly' Hotaru killing me in cold blood? Setsuna acting like a frigid bit- err, unpleasant person? But even if that future is unlikely, the threat that caused it was not. The Demonata need to be dealt with quickly, before they get the chance to reach that point._

_In better news, the Urgoks could gate around Earth freely after passing the barrier. What Xycell didn't mention was that the weakest point in that barrier would be Mount Everest._

XxX

Ranma grumbled as she brushed off the remaining snow from her body. The cold didn't bother her, but upon the return to Juuban the snow had melted fast and activated her curse.

"So you're saying that since you became a being of magic, a regular Demonata, you have to stay in magic-saturated areas?" Ranma asked as she walked back towards Setsuna's home. With her were three of what appeared to be kids.

The Urgoks had glamored upon arriving on Earth, the two short Hunters taking the form of children and Kresh – as he was taller – a young teenager. However, Kresh's arrival on the dried husk of a planet, in a magical sense, brought a rather unexpected dilemma for them.

Kresh sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Something is wrong here, Lord Ranma. Seriously wrong. There is absolutely _no_ magic in the air besides what your Nemesis is producing around her. What I did to ascend the flesh tied my very life to magic. There is no good human example for it, but think of magic in the air like oxygen to me. Without it, I choke."

Ranma cursed to herself, whipping a few stray droplets of snow melt from her face. "Then I suppose your magic will be of limited use out here." Fortunately, Kresh had more than a fair hand at weapons as well.

The disguised demon stared hard at her. "Lord Ranma, you are missing the point. This planet _should_ be rich with magic. This shouldn't be an issue for us. Even in the human universe, magic is a part of nature. Our planet is a frozen wasteland, yet it holds more magic than this planet of forests, oceans, and _life."_

Xycell hadn't dropped Ranma far from Setsuna's house, fortunately, and they had arrived there quickly. Activating her curse again, using Nemesis's magic to return male, Ranma opened the door and stepped inside.

As he did, he said, "I know this is a problem, Kresh. I asked Nemesis about it, and she said we need to wait until Terra herself explains it."

The Urgok grimaced, following his master inside with the two Hunters. "There is another like her? I approve of your mate, my lord, but I know she and any like her won't tolerate our presence for long. Best we are away when she comes."

Ranma nodded, idly sending his senses into the house to feel who was home. All but Setsuna were inside, currently.

The more powerful Demonata were magic thieves. Even unintentionally, they stole magic from the planets they were on to empower their spells. To use something else's magic not willfully given could more or less be attributed to rape. Ranma used Nemesis's magic, that within the planet, with her consent – as her Senshi, he was the only one to have it. He could use an Urgok's magic too, as their master. Kresh had used Nemesis's magic only once before, stolen only the tiniest bit from her.

That had been the first time Ranma had ever seen Nemesis go into an honest rage.

As it was late and Ranma's stomach growling up a storm, he rounded up the small group and bundled them into the kitchen. The blond, Haruka, was in there, finishing the last of her own dinner alone. She stared at him as he entered with the demons, fork halting half-way to her mouth.

An awkward silence fell between them. Thanks to Setsuna, Haruka and her lover had been more or less civil to Ranma and Yuka during their stay. However, she had made it a point to express her displeasure and distrust for both of them, mentioning that she was 'keeping an eye on them.'

That of course led to the tense silences whenever they were in the same room together.

Finally, the woman grunted and her fork finished its trip. Still chewing, she sent a dirty look his way. "What're these kids doing here?"

Kresh sent an amused look at Ranma. "She distrusts you again."

"Of course she does," Ranma said with a sigh. It had been no different back during the Moon Kingdom... Until he had impaled her through the stomach with his scythe and whispered the deadly promise that when the day came that the Dark Moon attacked and her allies were dying all around her, he would be there to save her ass, and that she better get used to the idea.

Perhaps not his best idea at the time, but she certainly quieted significantly in his presence after recovering.

Presently, Ranma decided to clear the bad air between them right now, this time without such... radical measures. "Kresh, Femern, Galruk, leave us for the moment. Down the hall, last door to your left. A girl named Yuka will be in there."

Without a word, the three demons stepped out of the room, leaving Ranma with Haruka. The woman stared at him suspiciously as he sat in the chair across from her – thankfully that ring Nemesis made for him made him no heavier than a Terran on the outside, so he didn't crush it flat.

He held her stare unflinchingly, fingers steepled before him. "Look, Uranus, we have never really gotten along well – in this life or the last – but I want to get this out of the way right now, before you go all gunslinger girl at the first misunderstanding. Those 'kids' you just saw, they aren't humans. They are demons under my control called Urgoks, and you get through your head right now that they won't do anything outside of what I tell them to."

The girl choked on her latest bite of food. Her eyes bulged and she pounded on her chest, then swallowed properly before gaping at him. Finally, she managed to sputter out a surprised, _"What?"_

"There were certain 'perks' to working under Metaria." Ranma shrugged. His gaze hardened then. "Yes, I admit that I worked for her. I was one of her personal assassins. I know it; you know it; Queen Serenity knows it. But what you need to understand is that I _left_ Metaria. She deceived me, and I promised to make her pay for it. I _swore_ myself to Queen Serenity, your queen."

He reached behind him, and faster than Haruka could blink, he whipped out his scythe and held it at her. The black blade rested against his throat, the green and silver shaft held out to her. "If you can't allow yourself to trust me, when I'm entitled to train you and the others, then you better just kill me here and now. Hesitation to listen to me against this threat will only lead to deaths, and I won't have that on my conscious."

"_Ranma, what are you doing?"_ Nemesis asked inside his head, surprise slipping into her voice. He ignored her, staring hard into Haruka's wide eyes.

For awhile nothing happened. Silence followed his words, and Haruka remained motionless, staring at him with his own blade at his neck. The soothing aura Nemesis brought fed into him, but he refused to let it change his expression or bearing.

Finally, Haruka's eyes narrowed and her mouth pressed into a thin line. She slowly brought her hand up, towards the wood of his scythe. He only watched her, unmoving. Just before she could touch the weapon, a fraction of a hair from grabbing it and ending him in a single jerk, she hesitated. He still hadn't flinched, knowing he could die.

Haruka saw his openness, trusting her with the final decision. Her hand dropped to her lap, away from the scythe, and her gaze averted from his.

Ranma smiled slightly, nodding approval. He stood and shouldered the scythe, keeping in touch with Nemesis. "Thank you. Now, tomorrow a man known as the Space Keeper will be coming to meet with you. You saw him earlier today, big guy in the red cloak. I advise that you listen to him."

Skipping dinner for now, Ranma turned and left the room without another word. He found Kresh standing just aside from the doorway, waiting for him with his arms folded. They both began walking down the hallway.

Kresh snorted. "I think it's cheating that she doesn't know you would have healed yourself with magic if she tried killing you."

Ranma laughed.

Yuka wasn't too pleased that the five of them were all cramming inside the sparse room, but so long as she didn't have to share her bed with any of the Urgoks, she was fine with it. Their side was really coming together now. Keeping the warning Crystal Tokyo had given him in mind, Ranma felt optimistic about their chances.

XxX

The following day, Ranma perched himself on the roof of a building, back resting against a structure. Kresh and the Hunters were with him, the former sitting with him and peering over the edge to the empty lot below them. The two Hunters – only a couple of the disciplined Urgoks whom Kresh led into the Slythe Mountains for regular Demonata hunting expeditions – busied themselves with examining and readying their weapons.

To Ranma's mind only, Nemesis had herself nestled under his arm, also watching over the edge of the roof. The woman wore her usual and wore it well, intentionally giving Ranma a wonderfully distracting view of her long legs as the hem of her dress got caught above her knees in their position.

Ranma had used one of the Sailor Scouts' communicators to notify Crystal alone of this next crossing, and the woman was on her way. This was the last time he was going to willfully allow someone to open a portal to the Demonata universe. He wanted a chance to see Queen Serenity in action with the power of a Senshi now backing her.

He had barely beat her once after gaining the boost of a Senshi himself. Now that she evened the playing field... This was bound to be interesting.

"I'm here," a woman's voice called from behind them, only slightly out of breath.

Ranma turned to see Crystal standing there, the woman dropping the glamor of her daughter to reveal her silver hair and purple eyes, and she slowly walked over to where they had gathered. She was wearing her school uniform still, to which Ranma almost laughed at. Keeping the smile from his lips, he tilted his head towards the lot below them.

"He's down there. For whatever reason, this guy decided to try this away from the public. Whether that's just our good luck or our mystery man has something special planned for today is still up for toss," Ranma informed, turning his attention back to the man standing out of place on the dirt, secluded from sight to any passerby's.

"The spell is nearly complete. Fifteen seconds," Kresh announced calmly, strapping his buckler to his inhuman arm.

"You should transform now," Ranma said, heeding his own advice. His clothes, something Setsuna had got for him, melted away in place of his Senshi uniform, the black armor plates materializing with heavy sounds. Nemesis adjusted herself accordingly, nestling back into his side.

The former Queen nodded. She pulled out her Ginzuisho, then started up the transformation sequence. For her credit, she didn't shout the incantation for it. The rest of it, however...

Ranma gaped as the lights started, watching _Queen Serenity_ go through the _whole thing –_ from her clothes vanishing, to the wings, to the glitter and sparkles. Under his arm, he felt Nemesis shaking with laughter at the spectacle.

When it finished, Ranma coughed once. "Okay, what's with the wings, and what's with the peepshow?" He had been certain Crystal would have figured out how to skip it, like he had. And the wings, what were those about?

"Well, that certainly left nothing to the imagination," Nemesis confirmed, amusement coloring her words.

The silver haired Sailor Moon laughed, the sound coming in her unique musical chime. "Come now, Ranma. You have seen it all before."

"Oh?" Nemesis exclaimed, turning an coy look Ranma's way.

"The wings are new," Ranma said, fighting to keep the blush off his cheeks and ignore Nemesis.

"Indeed they are. An addition to the Eternal Senshi form. I do not know if you or the others can achieve this form, though I would advise you not to try." She winked. "You are plenty handsome and masculine without feathery wings."

Below them, the man had since sacrificed himself in the sake furthering mankind's destruction, leaving behind a violent orange shape of light with harsh edges lining it everywhere save the bottom, which remained a sharp line.

Crystal's nose wrinkled at the mess, then she smoothed her face. "I shall return in a moment. Ta ta." She stepped from the roof, skirt somehow immune to the rush of wind, and landed cleanly despite her heeled boots. Ginzuisho in hand, the woman gracefully approached the portal.

"Ranma," Nemesis commented finally as they watched her go, "I do believe she was flirting with you."

XxX

Crystal knew she had practically given her blessing for Setsuna to pursue the man, but he was just so fun to tease sometimes.

She waited for whatever nightmare would come snarling through the harsh light of the portal, magic gathered powerfully in her Ginzuisho. She could feel the Moon above her, an endless ocean of magic awaiting her beckoning. Between the cosmic power and the ancient relic, she knew she was well prepared for a fight.

Even so, there was still that uncertainty when standing in the middle of a battleground, before the battle and before knowing exactly whom or what your opponent would be. The solid dirt beneath her boots, the silence filled only by the hum of the portal... Her heart beat steadily inside her chest, apprehension rising.

It was also comforting to know both Ranma and Kresh were at her back if she proved outmatched.

Something exited the portal, very calmly. It simply stepped out, landing on the ground across from her with a heavy sound. Cold, intelligent eyes regarded her, and she could feel small waves of power radiating from the demon before her. Interesting.

It stood at seven feet tall, even hunched forward on its two bent legs. It was much like a primate, with snowy white fur covering its body and two long arms at its side, a thick tail behind it. The muscled bulk of the creature was obvious even so, and with its rolling aura of power Crystal knew a physical match would not be in her favor. On the head was a pig's snout, and under that, pearly white fangs gleamed as it grinned maliciously at her. Sharp claws of thick bone tipped every finger, the hands curling slightly.

Another form followed the Demonata out, and then another. Unlike the first, both newcomers were very obviously human.

The first was a tall man, short brown hair and striking green eyes, with a handsome smile on his lips. He was very pretty, Crystal noticed idly, and held himself with a strong and confident bearing, not at all threatening. He wore a stylish coat that she knew wasn't modern Terran fashion, one hand inside a pocket, and the other waved at her as he winked. Crystal had a feeling this man was quite the lady-killer.

The other, in contrast, was bald and small in height. He had baby blue eyes and a hooked nose, features gaunt and middle-aged. The man seemed made of skin and bones, his blue robes hanging limply from his form, wind blowing it enough to show there wasn't much filling it out underneath. The man eyed her and the surrounding area, his bright blue eyes hard and glaring, and his cheek pulled back in a tick that didn't seem nervous.

The handsome man flicked his hand, and a black hat with a wide brim appeared. He began walking away from them as he set it on his head, building an adventurous and mysterious appearance. "Well, I'll leave you to it." His voice rolled with smooth masculinity, hiding just a trace of suggestive amusement.

The smaller man harrumphed. "Thou should save thyself the effort. Thy tricks wilt not even be needed."

The other laughed richly, turning to beam a grin at him while one hand held his hat. "But I like people. You have fun now." His green eyes slid to Crystal, shadowed under the hat yet still engaging, then he began moving away again.

The bald one turned back to Crystal, frowning. "Thou do not look much like the image did. Art thou Ranma Uzuki-Saotome in female form?"

They finally had faces on their enemy, and already things were tracing back to Ranma. Queen Serenity sighed, exasperated.

She opened her mouth to respond, but there was a sudden loud crunch to her left, along with the sound of heavy metal clinking against metal. "That would be me." Ranma had apparently jumped from the roof, landing a few feet in front of the retreating man and stopping him. His impact left a respectable impression in the dirt.

"Don't leave just yet," Ranma said, meeting the man's grin with his own. His voice rose, carrying over to Crystal. "Ware, that demon is Greater Demonata."

"Do excuse me," the man said, beginning to walk again past Ranma. "Your fight is not with me."

Ranma frowned, reaching out to stop him, when something slammed against his chest armor and he went flying back, into a pile of construction wood and sending fragments flying as the stack buried him. The man continued onward unhindered.

Crystal's eyes flashed as she saw that, and she noticed that the Demonata had moved, now standing between Ranma and the leaving man. It had hit him? She hadn't even seen it move.

"And so this fight begins," the small man intoned, blue fire beginning to gather in his hands in an obvious display of magic.

"Fare thee well, One," the other called back, still with the undercurrents of amusement.

Using the Ginzuisho, Crystal sent a powerful snare towards the man getting away, a mostly transparent netting that would stick to its target and could be neither broken nor removed by anything except herself. She watched it firing towards the man, and then suddenly veer off course and stick to the ground. The Demonata was facing her now.

Ranma had escaped the woodpile looking none the worse, yet his attempts of pursuit resulted in getting knocked back again, despite the intercepting blast of magic he had sent towards the Demonata. He came sliding across the dirt next to her, and Crystal was shocked to see her own snare encompassing him.

She freed him and turned a frosty glare towards the man who was now watching them. "Who are you, and what is your intent?"

"I am One of twelve, the first and greatest of the mages to ensure that the threat of Ranma Uzuki-Saotome is ended," the man boasted, his cheek pulling in another tick afterwards.

"Lemme guess, a proficient, non-Senshi magic user," Ranma growled from his place on the ground, then began to pick himself up. "Fan-fucking-tastic."

"Who sent you?" the Senshi of the Moon demanded.

The man snorted. "Thou hast no need to know. Thou wilt die here."

"Handle this jackass," Ranma told her. "I'll go see if I can do something about the other."

"I would not advise that, Senshi of Nemesis," the man barked, a gleam coming to his blue eyes. "My friend here, of the new batch, hath been designed to stop thou."

"Designed to- That's a new one, at least," Ranma muttered, eyes narrowing. He then grinned lopsidedly and pitched his voice low to where only Crystal could hear him, "Kresh and the Urgoks stopped him. This portal is leaking magic for them to use."

"I will handle these two, then," Crystal acknowledged, stepping forward. Like Ranma, she wished to see where her power now rested with her having a Senshi form.

She saw that the Demonata was standing next to the mage now, both watching her. "Your name then is One, I presume? I give you this chance to return to whence you came. If not, then you shall die here."

"I am One, the first and strongest," the man sneered, his chuckle bringing another twitch through him. "This is thy end!"

The fire in his hands exploded outwards, swirling in tightly constrained columns yet coiling through the air like twin serpents. Crystal called upon the magic in the Moon and gathered it within the Ginzuisho, adding to its already awesome power. She had yet to see the limit of how much the weapon could channel at once.

As the beams of fire arched to the sides, intending to come at her from two directions, Crystal unleashed her power. A wave of raw magic split in three, her forcing the Ginzuisho to remain steady as she concentrated. Normally the attack would cause air distortions, yet this time it flickered visibly with silver light Crystal assumed was the Moon's magic.

Two to either side amassed like a physical wall against the fire, extinguishing it in passing, while the most powerful force went straight towards her two opponents. The Demonata merely watched it coming, cold black eyes staring into hers, while the man's hands shot before him palms out and he began barking a phrase of magic.

Something collided powerfully against Crystal's spell, but hers tore through it, diminishing slightly. Growling, the wave upon him now, the man crossed his arms and spat one word. Something protected him from the worst of her spell, a shimmering shield of pink appearing before him as his feet slid back across the dirt.

The Demonata had somehow remained untouched during it, and it suddenly held out a hand towards her. It returned an equivalent wave of raw magic back at her. Crystal jumped over it gracefully, and at the peak of her ascent she unleashed a bolt of lightning – real lightning – back at it.

There was a flash and a deafening roar. The heavy scent of ozone followed, in addition to a tingle of charged air prickling across her skin and hairs. Crystal opened her eyes after the flash to land properly and see the results, keeping her power at the ready.

The Demonata had a black spot on its furred chest, and it idly brushed away soot and burned hairs to show it entirely unharmed underneath. Had it healed so fast? The mage was breathing hard, but looking showed the excitement of a narrow save rather than exhaustion. There was a blemished furrow in the dirt around him where the lightning must have been grounded.

The mage held his arms like he was carrying a bundle of some sort, his eyes wide. "All power and little skill, _girl."_

Glowing shapes of oranges, reds, and blues began dropping from his arms. The revealed themselves into animals – birds, lizards, snakes, rodents, and other small creatures – yet each appeared as if molded of fire. Nearly two dozen of them fell to the dirt and began approaching her, leaving black in their wake.

The mage muttered something and held two fingers out together on one hand. An honest to goodness whip of fire sprouted from the fingers, flames licking the air as it coiled down to the ground. When it completed, around ten feet long, he cracked it once, searing the ground where it struck.

The Demonata didn't glance at the man, but it too produced a flaming whip from a claw, coiling the burning construct around its other hand.

They were trying to divide her attention. Crystal knew the strategy well, having often been employed by the Senshi against more powerful opponents. Fortunately she had experience against multiple opponents.

"_COSMIC MOON POWER!"_ she shouted, using one of the Ginzuisho's own abilities.

Pink orbs left the ancient weapon, spiraling towards her opponents. Several of the orbs only passed near the fiery critters, yet the magic tore them apart before continuing on their way. The sheer power behind each orb was formidable enough that it could damage by proxy.

The mage seemed to realize this and cursed, taking steps back as he struck with his whip. He detonated several of the orbs early, at the cost of losing his whip, and then began muttering another spell in a desperate counter.

The Demonata proved less impressed. It lashed out with its own copy of the whip, and with it, it repeated the early wave of raw magic. As the orbs dissipated against the wave, it followed with another one, catching those that broke through the first.

Crystal didn't let up. Pulling more magic from the Moon into the Ginzuisho, she summoned what should have been a large hand made of raw magic. Instead, a semi-corporeal construct of silver appeared, and it was massive enough to grab the demon by the torso. Crystal had it pick the demon up like a club and swung it into the mage, who cursed and tumbled back, losing the spell he had been trying for.

This would be the end of that man. Crystal reached her intent into the dirt below him, shaping it with her magic into sharp and solid spikes. She prepared to pull those from the ground directly into the man, an admittedly brutal death yet effective. Before she could, however, something invisible picked her up around the middle and took her off her feet.

Queen Serenity's eyes went wide as she found herself airborne and bound by something unseen, and then she felt whatever it was slamming her back towards the ground. She knew she didn't have a decent tolerance for pain and acted frantically.

She softened the dirt into powdery sand and thickened the air between her and it, building a heavy wind resistance before the pillowed impact. It jarred her only slightly, and she still had her wits about her. Crystal used the Ginzuisho to break the spell holding her and rolled to her feet, idly cleaning the dust from herself.

The mage was standing and had one hand firing another column of tightly contained flames at her, and the other was swirling in place in little circles. The Demonata was advancing towards her, claws clenching and unclenching.

_The man can split his attention between multiple spells at a time,_ Crystal noted dully, preparing herself for the confrontation. She brought her Ginzuisho, the Imperium Silver Crystal, back up and gathered her magic.

"KRESH!" Ranma's voice shouted, alarmed.

Before Crystal could properly wonder what was wrong, there was a white and black blur passing her. It checked the Demonata, sending the beast flying backwards, and a sweep of a scythe cut the approaching flames in half. Crystal had a brief view of Ranma as he stopped the spell, and then he was moving again. He must have been without his ring already, considering that she could barely follow his movements.

He went in for the kill with the mage, but before he could, a second blur slapped him away, sending his heavy form crashing back. The trench his body dug in the dirt was deeper and shorter than a normal person's would be.

Ranma hadn't even finished sliding before he flipped himself back and out, landing on his feet in a kneel besides Crystal. In almost the same instant, the Guardian Urgok appeared on Crystal's other side, shield before him and spear poised above it.

"Lord Ranma?" the demon asked, voice low and cautious.

Crystal was also confused. She didn't exactly require his assistance. The demon was tricky, but the mage was too weak to be a threat to herself.

The man had his teeth bared, and he rose from his crouch to a stand, planting his scythe on the ground before him – a sort of 'no stance' of his, Crystal had learned. "That demon is learning from you. All its spells so far have been copies of either yours or the mage's. The longer you fight, the more outclassed you will be."

Crystal frowned, reassessing the white furred Demonata standing besides the mage, cold intelligent eyes still watching them. "So? To be a Greater Demonata, wouldn't it already know most of my spells and more? This is about skill and power, not variety."

Ranma shook his head, a pained expression coming to him. "No, that's not it. It's learning _you_, Crystal. It's learning your abilities, and I can guarantee its reasoning out how best to counter them and beat you. Before long, even your best won't be enough to fight it. An opponent like this, you need to kill it as fast as possible."

"How do you know this?" Crystal asked. She trusted the man's battle wisdom, though.

They all watched as the Demonata produced a scythe of pure bone in its hands, the blade wicked as the one Ranma now held. The man grunted. "He said it was designed to beat me. It's exactly how I fight. If it and I spend too long trying to learn each other, even if I _do_ manage to win I'm left too weak to stop the follow up attack, which I'm assuming is bound to come."

The orange portal was still up, a looming menace to their fight.

"So we hit it with everything at the same time, leave dead before it gets to chance to turn that against us?" Kresh asked, still set in his stance.

"That's the plan," Ranma agreed. The air around him began to buzz with energy, thickening the magic in the air noticeably. Crystal realized he had filled himself with Nemesis's magic in preparation, and she did the same for herself and the Ginzuisho – the weapon could hold so much more than her own body, a near bottomless reservoir.

To be full of magic like this was a wonderful feeling, Crystal found. Her entire body tingled with pleasure, from the tips of her toes to the base of the hairs on her head. It was like being full of life, her very existence taking on a new meaning. Even something as simple as taking a breath, the power quivered pleasantly through her, bringing a heightened awareness to her lungs and the muscles in motion. If she were to but remain like this...

Crystal shut out the allure of the magic, focusing her thoughts. "The mage?" she asked.

"Kresh, I'll busy the Demonata while you end baldy. Be quick," the man instructed, his eyes two chips of ice as they regarded the demon. "Crystal, with me." He took a breath, hand tightening over his scythe. "Go!"

He and Kresh shot off. His scythe met the one of bone with a loud sound, while the small legged Urgok sprinted past them directly to the mage. Crystal used what she had built up, forcing creativity to throw off the Demonata.

Ranma was obviously the better duelist between weapons, scoring deep cuts inside the demon's fur and bleeding it crimson patches, but the thing kept itself healed easily. Its footwork was quick, and that was Crystal's target. Two hands of granite reached from the dirt to grasp the things ankles in the fight, and they began pulling it under.

At the same time, rings of light surrounded it. She tried trapping its arms to its sides, but she missed and only got its chest. She began tightening the rings, sharpening them, and red spilled down its form. She closed her fist, and the rings cut through the demon.

"No! I shalt not be defeated so easily!" the mage cried out. He was a bloody mess with Kresh's spear impaled in his stomach and one arm completely severed. His other arm danced with motion though, and his body lit with flames. He became a human torch, gathering more and more fire, spreading an inferno around himself that heated from orange flames into blue.

He shouted a spell and thrust his arm up. The ground under Kresh erupted, spilling clumps of dirt and lava into the air. The demon was singed, but he seemed unimpressed. He tossed his scimitar into the air and caught it by the blade, then flung it like a Frisbee.

The mage was so consumed by whatever new spell he was working up and blinded by his own fire that he missed approaching weapon. It cut off his head cleanly, then embedded into the side of the building behind him, the simple hilt quivering from the impact.

The headless mage toppled forward, flames winking out suddenly to a lingering wisp of smoke and charred ground.

Kresh wrenched back his arm, and both of his weapons returned to him by magic, sheathing the scimitar to his back before catching the spear, then he rounded onto the demon Crystal and Ranma were still facing.

Crystal had hoped for the best when she cut it in half, but it was not to be. Red blood had left the lower torso like a gooey limb and reached into the upper, grabbing the innards in a fistful and pulling it back to the lower half. And then it had healed, leaving behind only more crimson stains.

Disturbing.

"Lord Ranma!" Kresh shouted, and suddenly he was there on the other side of the demon, jabbing with his spear in coordinated thrusts.

Scythe and spear bloodied their foe, but it didn't take long for the Greater Demonata's bone scythe to begin successfully deflecting both. Crystal produced another semi-corporeal hand above the demon, intending to crush it flat – or at least distract it.

The air took a sudden chill, and Crystal's exhale actually produced a puff of white. Ranma had triumph in his voice as he shouted, _"FUBUKI SOUSOU!"_

The white orb was at point blank, and the demon seemed to recognize its threat immediately. It snarled in fury, beginning to gather a powerful counter, beady eyes locked on Ranma's attack.

And in the still of that moment, Kresh said softly, "Boom."

Crystal watched the Urgok's spear, the tip coated in a strange orange and violet light, plunge into the demon's unguarded back. Instead of just leaving it at that and safely retreating, Kresh twisted his weapon in deeper, earning him a roar. Still the white furred beast produced its attack, and it met Ranma's only inches from its body.

And then the beast exploded.

Heavy strips of flesh ripped out, peeling around Kresh's spear. Blood splattered with it, but it didn't hide how the peeling flesh continued until chunks of the demon were flying out, leaving nothing behind of the rear half of its body but gore and pieces. And then Ranma's attack drilled its steady way through the demon's counter to reach its front and detonated against that side.

A wave of frosty concussion whipped at Crystal, giving her goosebumps, and a mist obscured her view of the battle. When it cleared, all that was left was Ranma and Kresh standing on either side of a snowy crater, both covered in flakes of ice.

Clearly it was over as Ranma shouldered his scythe and Kresh lowered his spear. Crystal breathed out and lowered her Ginzuisho, though she kept the magic inside it. She saw Ranma exchange a nod with Kresh, respect for his ally, and she walked over to them, rubbing her arms to spread heat back into them.

Reaching them, Crystal arched an eyebrow at Ranma. "That did not seem so bad, for how worried you appeared."

Ranma began wiping the white flakes from his arms and face. "Picture if I were alone. The fight starts slow, an exchange between my scythe and it until it also produces that scythe. Steadily, it gets better and better, showing no sign of weakening from the constant wounds I inflict on it. I realize it can't be beaten that way, so I throw my heaviest attack at it, the _Fubuki Sousou._

"It's counter gets overwhelmed, and the demon is nearly destroyed – but not entirely. It heals, and now it knows my best. Whether it starts using something similar back at me or finds an absolute counter to it, that venue is no longer open for me to defeat it. So I go all out, magic unrestrained and to the reaches of my physical limits. But magic is its field, and it only soaks that up. It learns my fighting style, the extent of what I can do, and since it is already outside my extents, it can work around that to defeat me."

He had cleaned off the worst of the frost, and he shrugged at her. "Of course, that thought process is assuming that I don't do the same to it, learning its limits and weaknesses, adapting to its fighting style – even this one. I could beat it alone, I'm almost certain, but it would be damn near exhausting if I didn't realize the trick to it before it was too late."

Crystal nodded slowly. Her place was in the palace, fighting with words in politics, not in the battlefield like Ranma. However, she understood._ This was a trap designed solely for Ranma. Either this foe hoped the Senshi wouldn't be here with him, or... Or it knows they aren't yet trained well enough to assist,_ she thought with a flicker of unease, though she only said, "That was only Greater Demonata. How does it compare to a Demon Master?"

Ranma's eyes tightened around the edges, and his words came softly, "The waves of power you felt from that thing, where its mere presence gave off currents of magic? Think of that, but instead of those gentle waves, picture tsunamis. The minds are even more cunning, in battle and in scheming, and so are their ingenuity for cruelty. Their capacities for manipulation of magic, of their own bodies, even the minds of people... It's too far to overcome."

Crystal recalled his earlier words on them, when they were a threat with the Dark Moon, _"Even your Ginzuisho wouldn't be enough to stop one."_ Kresh remained expressionless at Ranma's words, but he did nothing to deny them. Crystal took a breath and asked, "How many Demonata do you think there are?"

Ranma nudged Kresh, who turned pensive. After a few moments, Kresh nodded. "During your Moon Kingdom, think of how many people there were on each planet. Billions upon billions even on tiny Earth, and hundreds that on the larger planets. All together, that is similar to how many Demon Masters there are. On the same census, all of every species of animal is the number of Greater Demonata, the bugs and insects the regular sort, and the microorganisms the lesser."

_That... cannot be possible._ Crystal had never once swooned nor fainted in her life, yet for the first time, she felt about to. The shock numbed her mind, and her balance seemed to sway unsteadily. She brought a hand to her head, stepping back as if away from the news. "Good Kresh, I believe you underestimating the numbers of life this solar system once contained. The number of _species_ of animals on a single planet, especially the outer planets, was near limitless, let alone the number of those animals within each species. As for bugs and insects, why there had been-"

"Crystal," Ranma interrupted gently. "Kresh was in the palace's library nearly everyday. He knows the numbers." Crystal's mouth dried, and her stomach seemed to drop from beneath her. He shrugged a shoulder. "They are a universe away and can't cross to ours on their own though, and hardly any are much concerned about doing us harm. For now, let's focus on the other guy that the Hunters are holding down right now. Kresh, watch the portal while we're-"

The orange patch of jagged light shrank steadily, the low drone of its hum fading, until it was completely gone. As quickly as that, the feed of magic into the area was cut off, and the greedy Earth began sucking it away like air in the vacuum of space.

Ranma's expression hardened with distrust, his beautiful blue eyes turning as cold as ice. "Let's hurry."

XxX

Ranma cursed violently as they arrived at where he felt the two Hunters were through his link with them.

While nowhere near Kresh's level, the Hunters were disciplined fighters skilled at weapons and magic. They used teamwork well, and each had great experience in butchering regular Demonata.

Reaching the alleyway, Ranma found Galruk bound against a wall and encased in ice, like a giant with a handful of gel had slapped him against it and froze the gel – all uneven and splattered around him. The white frost forming over the ice obscured the snow-skinned Urgok almost completely. Femern, the other Hunter, lay sprawled over the ground on at the other end. His weapons lay around him, the shield forcing his arm to bend awkwardly.

They were still alive, Ranma knew as much from his bond with them, but the man – mage – had escaped. More, the grinning snake had left them both alive, when obviously they were at his mercy. _The question is why?_

Ranma's fingers found purchase under a smooth bend of ice against the wall, and with a large heave the entire construct came off with a loud crack. The back of the prison was smooth, with the grooves of the building's brick. He let it drop to the ground, and the ice shattered into large pieces.

Kresh had kneeled besides Femern, checking him over, while Crystal had slowed her approach to stare. The woman's face was an expressionless mask. "What happened here?"

Ranma began clearing the rest of the ice from the Urgok, finding him unconscious. He grunted. "The mage got away."

Crystal turned her cool gaze his way. "Refrain from flippancy. Can you tell, through your connection, what happened?"

"No. We'll have to ask when they wake up. Kresh, get their glamors back on," he said, then glanced at Queen Serenity, now kneeling next to him. "School's out in an hour. Tell the girls we are having a meeting right after, I don't care where. I want everyone there, including Endymion. Even your old advisers, if they take human form." He paused for a second. "Except Uranus. Xycell will be speaking with her. She'll need to be told though, after..."

Crystal blinked at him as he hefted the previously frozen Urgok over his shoulder, the demon now appearing as a small child in nondescript clothes, and stood. She followed him in rising and asked, "What's the occasion? What has changed?"

Ranma grunted again. "We are going to need more time for training. I'm having all of you drop from school."

XxX

Kiima burst into Saffron's bedchambers, slamming the door shut behind her with a worried look on her face. She shoved the beam in place to bar the door, but she also knew that wouldn't be enough. One swoop had her next to Saffron's bed, where she kneeled hastily. "Lord Saffron, the intruder is almost here!"

Saffron, currently looking no more than five years old - he always aged sporadically fast after rebirth - sat calmly on his bed. His back was resting against the back frame, with one knee under his chin. Despite hearing the sounds of battle for the last hour, he had yet to show the usual fear for himself that he had previous rebirths.

The young Lord turned towards his 'nursemaid' and smiled softly. "Let her in."

Kiima was startled to say the least, and more so when a _"HIRYU SHOTEN HA!"_ was heard not far from the door. That was the technique that had _killed_ him, and he wanted her to let this person in? She hesitated but bowed her head and was moving when he raised an eyebrow at her. At the door, she hesitated again, this time gulping before throwing back the wooden beam and opening the grand door.

Outside was complete and utter chaos, with winged men and woman strewn about unconscious, more than a few groaning in pain. Surprisingly, none were dead. In the center of it all, only ten feet from the door, was a woman with orange hair, looking none the worse for all her fighting. With a trickle of fear in her spine, Kiima remembered when it had been the groundli- when it had been Ranma and his friends doing something similar, right before he ripped Saffron to pieces.

Feyri flicked a few strands of orange hair back over her shoulder - her only sign of dishevelment. She smiled at Kiima sweetly, but it looked even more frightening on her hardened face. "May I speak with Saffron now?" With another gulp and a glance at all the downed bodies, Kiima nodded and opened the door wider.

Feyri calmly strode past her, not batting an eye at the wings spread wide - a sign of intimidation and often seen before attacking. Her nearly glowing green eyes were all for the child sitting on the massive bed. "I tried for the peaceful approach first. I promise."

Saffron's strange mood seemed to be lingering as he smiled at the newcomer. "What brings you here, Feyri?"

Kiima gaped at her charge. "You _know_ this groundling?"

Saffron frowned in her direction, but for the life of her Kiima couldn't see why until he spoke. "You should too, Kiima. She was… friends of sorts with your mother."

The silver haired phoenix captain turned wide eyes to the intruder. "Her? But I thought they were all…"

"Dead?" Feyri asked. Her smile seemed a bit pained. "The others are. Karin died in a fight against the Musk, while Naomi made the mistake of giving the Kiss of Death to Chinese military. And it appears, Saffron, that you are also the last of the Martians from what I've seen so far."

Saffron's calm expression showed traces of a mask, not altering in the slightest at Feyri's implied question. He glanced at Kiima. The girl was the last daughter of the last surviving Martian, also having taken the last dose of Mercury's drug that gave eternal youth. The girl knew of her history, but she had never seen the magnificent spires of hollowed rock, the crimson fields of iron rich soil, the Martian Palace at its peak… Things there made Phoenix Mountain seem nothing better than a battered shack. Martian-born, but not quite Martian herself.

"We are the last of the Moon Kingdom, Feyri," Saffron acknowledged. "Again, what brings you here?"

The Jovian woman crossed her arms before leaning against a pillar. "Ranma." Kiima twitched at the name, but whether it was a smile or a grimace one couldn't be sure.

Saffron nodded, his face still the calm ruler's mask. "About a week ago?" Feyri nodded once. Saffron turned to face one of the mounted paintings in his bedchamber. "Not only do I remember, but I remember that I didn't remember before. It sparked a rush with the rest of my memories, happening then instead of my twentieth birthday."

Expressionless face met placid mask as Feyri spoke, "Yesterday, one of my Matriarchs presented a rather interesting tale. It told of this man, Ranma Saotome, and how he was sent to the past 3,000 years ago, where he learned that Amazons were of Jovian descent, worked for a Queen of an "ancient kingdom" and died fighting off a kingdom of darkness. He was supposedly resurrected recently, around the same time I was struck by certain memories of a Senshi named Ranma." The radiant emeralds that were her eyes took on a dangerous quality. "The most interesting part of this, however, is that this "kingdom of darkness" is returning, and this Ranma is going off to fight it once more."

Saffron, who had been dispassionately calm while listening, gasped at that last bit. Once he regained hold of himself, he scowled. "What do you propose we do?"

The orange haired woman shrugged a shoulder. "Head to Japan. Find him. Help him. We lost everything, Saffron. The gas purged Jupiter like the fires purged Mars. We lost our Senshi, our people, our culture, our _planets,_ only to be left with petty squabbling in this Terran valley. We are the _last_ of our kind. I say we do something more for once."

He nodded, rising from the bed. Young his body may be and without its full power, but his mind was old and he was not entirely defenseless. "Are you coming, Kiima?"

XxX

"Drop me, Saffron, and I'll tear you limb from limb until you are begging me to stop. Don't test me; I know you regenerate," Feyri warned as she eyed the ocean below her with contempt. "You don't live close to Jusenkyo for 3,000 years without eventually picking up a curse."

"I didn't," Saffron grumbled. He was in his _five-year-old_ body and the girl _demanded_ that _he_ be the one to carry her, not Kiima. He glanced at the water curiously. He wondered what her curse was...

"Stop thinking about it, Saffron. If I even _touch_ the water, I will show you the true fury of the _Hahoemi Sannen Goroshi."_

The winged-boy flinched. Even knowing how one did the 'Three Year Smile of Death' did not make it much more bearable.

XxX

After the meeting, Ranma walked down the steps from Rei's temple alone. As alone as he could get, anyways. Nemesis remained in the large black back slung over his shoulder, and Kresh – literally needing the magic she produced to survive – followed in his wake, distant but present.

His news hadn't come without resistance of course, but it was the only reasonable path. He had thought that out of all of them, Mercury would understand most, considering the logical woman she had been, but instead the girl seemed the most scandalized. In the end, though, he had just shrugged off their complaints and warned them that should they try to continue going to school, he would bring them to practices by force.

Something this "big" meant that the girls' parents would need to be told. Ranma felt a twang of regret as he remembered that they were nothing more than kids still, but it didn't matter. Necessity was unprejudiced to age. They were all that he had, and he needed more. Still, the girls would have to explain to their parents what they were doing and that they were Senshi, which was sure to cause rifts in the family and destroy their chances at normalcy.

Just kids, damn it all.

The threat was too big though. No, that wasn't quite it. It was the same it always had been, even in the beginning. Now though, something felt off about it, a bad feeling settling in the base of his stomach. Ranma was afraid – afraid that he might be missing something crucial, some key point to the threat of Demonata that he might have forgotten or just hadn't seen yet.

He intended to be ready for it, whatever it was. He was a force enough himself, while Kresh and Crystal were both frightfully powerful in their own rights. With Yuka turned into a new deadly predator, Xycell again accessible, his Urgoks at his back, and the Senshi properly trained, their chances were good.

More than good, once he got the ball rolling with the Senshi. This new foe meant a shift in his intended training. He remembered the mage that got away, lurking about in Juuban with questionable intentions. _One in twelve,_ he remembered. Weaker than the one Kresh killed or not, they would be fighting magic users along with Demonata. So, for the first time, he was going to teach the Senshi manipulation of magic. More than ways to strengthen their Senshi spells, he was going to teach them magic the way he knew it.

It was dangerous business. He had nearly killed himself several times learning, and that was with the knowledgeable Adafild guiding his every action. More, it was dangerous for those who might one day be his enemy to learn – treachery he had always feared, retribution for being a former enemy of the Moon Kingdom.

But the Senshi were literal powerhouses of magic, with whole planets backing them. It was prime time he capitalized on that. And should they still be fighting this threat by the time the girls reached twenty, they would regain the memories of their original training and become true terrors with their skill, abilities, and now command over magic.

The thought made Ranma smile, turning his attention to the blue sky with white clouds, the sun still high overhead. He felt a swell of pride inside for the girls. He had always intended (more accurately his first father Genma had always intended and Ranma had accepted it) to open a _dojo_ and train students in his school of martial arts. Here he was, years and a couple of lifetimes later, with students of his own. He had poured time, effort, patience, and so much more into them. The thought of the results of his work, how much those girls had improved, brought a profound sense of fondness and contentment within.

_Don't go gettin' all sappy on me now, Ranma. We got work to do_.

* * *

AN: Against my better judgment, I'm posting this chapter now, without anything more written ahead of time. Reason for it is, well, I'm excited for it. Also, sometimes reviews can help guide how I lay out the next chapter, and the CT scene came out better than I had expected it would. In other news, for you old Resurrection fans, you may notice that we're up to date~ish. This is the last chapter I was able to cut'n'paste in old Res scenes. From here on its all new stuff.

And for the newer peeps, I must ask, how are yall following along? Even if you haven't read Demonata, are things getting too confusing or anything? You are the intended audience, after all.

A long block of text this time, folks, at a hefty 40k. Thanks for bearing with me,

-Sub

_*Edit (03-04-11_)_: Ending thought of the chapter sounded too similar to the previous chapter, so I cut back a bit. Also a few typo fixes in addition to an update on my recent status - Long break from writing, just now getting back into it. I should be getting back to this soon._


	5. The Grindstone

The Grindstone

* * *

"Alright, so let's get our facts straight and work from there," Ranma said.

He was walking down the street towards where he was to meet the Senshi for the day's training, fifteen minutes until nine o'clock in the morning. The massive black bag he used to hide Nemesis was by his side instead of behind him for once, and his right hand was inside the zipped compartment to establish the contact between them. Her aura soothed him and helped keep his mind focused.

"Demonata are trying to get into our universe and slaughter us. Nothing new there. However, right now someone or something is trying especially hard in crossing demons over, and so far he or she has been successful, no matter how limited the results. We need a name for this guy. How's Big Bad sound for now?"

Nemesis, the illusion of her walking next to him, smiled in amusement. "Tacky, but I see no need to honor whomever it is with anything better. Continue."

Ranma nodded once. "Right, so Big Bad is getting into people's minds, somehow convincing anyone with a shred of magical ability to open up pathways between our universe and the Demonata's. Additionally, he has twelve mages working for him, all of which are currently after my head. Now, here's what we know for sure: not only does Big Bad have access to Greater Demonata, he has at least one Demon Master with him. Maybe he _is_ a Demon Master. Either way, only one of those have the ability to "design" Demonata."

"You say 'he'. Don't forget the last 'Big Bad' was female." She was talking about Metaria. "As were most of the other Senshi's enemies before our arrival."

Shrugging a shoulder, Ranma said, "Eh, let's just assume it's a he. Anyways, let's keep this in perspective. So Big Bad is or has a Demon Master, so all he needs to do is cross that over, have it summon in its army, and just like that Earth is destroyed. Now that seems to be his intent, so why hasn't he done it yet?"

Nemesis hummed in thought, then her expression hardened. "I think I know. Terra's lack of magic. If Demon Masters are beings of magic, similar to Kresh, they need magic to survive. I can only assume that by their greater power they require more magic, perhaps more than a simple portal – as we've seen so far – lets in from their universe. Also, the summoned army will need a steady magic supply. So, potentially, this Big Bad hasn't done it yet because he can't."

"Which would mean Big Bad needs a way to supply that magic, either by healing Earth or using an alternative source. And so he sends our mystery mage in to work on that." Ranma paused. "Well I'll be damned. We're actually getting somewhere with this. But let's finish with the facts first."

"Who the hell are you talking to?" Ami blurted from over Ranma's left shoulder. The girl had defied his order to drop from school, instead showing up to class early that morning. So, true to his word, he showed up at the school, found her in class, swung her kicking and screaming over his shoulder, and left the building. He still had his arm around her legs, intent on carrying her all the way to their current makeshift training ground.

"Be quiet, Mercury," he muttered absently. The girl had never liked him anyways. "Now, Big Bad. Thanks to our dear Hotaru-chan in Crystal Tokyo, we know that he is hiding out in the Demonata universe, which provides a legitimate problem. I highly doubt that we can just walk through one of the portals directly into Big Bad's lair. We need a name for that too. Ideas?"

"Realm of Badness?" Nemesis coined teasingly.

"Hideout of Doom?" Kresh offered, walking behind them.

"We'll work on that later," Ranma affirmed. "For now, let's use some Tolkien. I'm certain one of those portals will take us into Mordor, but not Mount Doom itself. I for one am not too keen on fighting my way through legions of Demonata, thousands of which will be of the Greater assortment, just to reach Big Bad's front door." They might not get the reference, but they would understand it enough.

Continuing, Ranma said, "Final few facts: the consequences. At worst, failure to stop Big Bad will mean the destruction of mankind. At best, failure will result in one of the alternatives, one of which is that 'Hotaru-chan kills Ranma' Crystal Tokyo. Either way, I appear to be dead, so let's make sure we get this right."

Nemesis patted his arm. "I'm sure that Crystal Tokyo is only a small possibility. Other alternatives may yield more positive outcomes. Now, you are forgetting two things: first, one mage is still unaccounted for in the area, although we may know what he is after. Second, that because the mages are after you, it implies that either this Big Bad holds a personal grudge against you or you provide a sufficient threat to him. Either way, Big Bad knows you, Ranma. We must consider why and how."

"Dammit," Ranma sighed. "I didn't even think of that. But even though I've pissed off a lot of people – just ask Mercury here – who the hell could it be? I mean, just about everyone who _could_ be holding a grudge against me died in the Moon Kingdom's fall, and there's no way anyone on Coronis would have recognized me when I worked as Metaria's assassin. Metaria herself is gone for good, her generals dead, and whatever's left of her army is banished in that Negaverse – whatever the hell that is.

"On the Demonata front, all that comes to mind is Metaria, Lord Loss, and Sir Anquish. We ruled out Metaria, and Sir Anquish I sent to hell with the Eris Ascension. Lord Loss, however, should still be under banishment from Madam Marietta," Ranma said, and Kresh grunted an affirmative behind him.

"What about the former comrade you let live?" Nemesis asked. "The one from Queen Metaria's Combat Squad named Tachi."

Ranma recalled her. The Combat Squad, those sent by Metaria to exterminate the planets during the war. He had been a part of them. They were Metaria's personal assassins, specially conditioned and trained in their work. Conditioned through torture and then a staged rescue, to become loyal to the Dark Moon Kingdom. Thanks to Nemesis, Crystal, and Ryu, Ranma was able to see through the lies, but they hadn't.

When the war came, so had they. Ranma left to fight them, killing almost all of his once-friends. There were three he didn't kill himself. On Jupiter, the one named Athena had turned herself into a living bomb of magic, and he had knocked her out to let the energies bleed out first. Senshi Jupiter had had the instructions to kill her once the magic inside her diminished. On Mercury, the Combat Squad's leader had been too skilled to beat. Ranma had tricked him into entering Space, Xycell's domain, where the Space Keeper had killed him. And then there was Tachi, the girl sent to Earth. Ranma had beat her and successfully convinced her to leave Metaria, so he had thought.

"It's possible but unlikely. Even if she had a reason to hold a grudge against me, she didn't know my fighting style, let alone to the extent of coming up with a counter to it. Besides, Big Bad has to be strong enough to subdue a Demon Master, like Metaria, or a Master himself. So I think its more likely that whomever he is, he has been observing us – maybe through a consultant – to the point where he deemed me a sufficient threat, not someone with an old grudge," Ranma concluded.

"You're a madman," Ami sighed from her place over his shoulder. "I have been kidnapped by a madman."

Ranma ignored her. "But we need to focus on the problem and how to solve it. While the identity of Big Bad might help, it's not important currently. Nem, what can we do to stop him?"

The green haired woman shrugged. "Presently, our possible paths of action are limited. We know he is influencing those with magical ability. Find a way to stop that. We know he is using them to open the portals to their universe. Find a way to stop that. We know he needs a way to establish a steady magic supply in order to cross a significant amount of demons over. Stop that. More radical courses are trying to engage Big Bad himself by going into his Mordor. Another radical idea is to send someone through a portal to scout said Mordor. Perhaps one of your familiar can blend in and spy on him for us."

Ranma grunted. "And all things are easier said than done. Dammit, so besides finding a possible reason for our mystery mage, we got nothing."

Nemesis hummed. "Perhaps. Although, dearest Avatar, perhaps we are looking at this wrong. We are working under the assumption that Big Bad's intent is to destroy all of humanity, like a Demonata. What if, as Hotaru had implied in Crystal Tokyo, the threat isn't Big Bad trying to cross a Demon Master over? That would make even our guess on the mage inaccurate."

_She's right._ Ranma cursed inside his mind, quite colorfully, but outwardly he only grunted again. "On the other hand, every Big Bad we've ever come across has always been "wipe out mankind." Also, the very likely possibility that he _is_ a Demon Master means that would be his ultimate plan. Hotaru-chan's hint could just as well mean that while the intent is wiping out mankind, there are other ways than crossing armies or a Master over."

"Lord Ranma," Kresh mentioned from behind him, but Ranma had felt it too.

Someone had started gathering magic elsewhere in the city, not too far from them. It didn't necessarily mean that whomever it was was a brainwashed magically gifted person hellbent on butchering fellow humans, but with recent times, Ranma knew better than to assume coincidence. It had only been a day since the last attempt, and already there was another.

He sighed, veering off course to head towards the gathering magic. "Sorry, Mercury, we got another fool attempting to cross demons over. Just gonna make a quick stop before we head over to the training ground."

"How nice of you to inform me," Ami said sweetly. "It's almost as if I _haven't_ been taken against my will by an uneducated jock of questionable mental health, whom has been talking to himself for the last _ten minutes!"_

Ranma grinned, patting the back of her leg. "I knew you'd understand."

"Quick kiss before I go," Nemesis mentioned, a smile of her own on her face.

Ranma slowed his walk to lean over, and the following kiss wouldn't have been deemed proper for public in Japan if they could see both persons rather than one man moving oddly.

"What are you _doing?"_ Ami asked finally, beginning to shift futilely in her captivity.

Ranma and Nemesis broke their kiss to shared amusement, and the woman untangled herself from him. Ranma even had to shift his balance from the loss of her body against his, and his hair still tingled as if her hands had been running through it and left it messy.

"I love you," she said in parting, giving him a wink.

"I..." Ranma started to say back, and then hesitated. Nemesis halted in her fading away, turning solid again, eyes watching him eagerly to see if he'd go on. There was a smile on her pink lips as she waited for him. "I love you too." There, he said it.

Nemesis beamed at him, sneaking in another kiss, and then vanished for good.

"YOU WHAT?" Ami shrieked, embarrassment obvious in her voice.

XxX

_And strangely, that's where I saw her again. Bec MacConn. I found the guy attempting the crossing, and Bec had shown up and slit his throat. Cold, efficient, deadly. Exactly what I needed. She mentioned that she was done hiding, that she had the ability to help and that she would. I could always use another soldier, and Bec came fully trained – the only proficient magic user I met that wasn't an enemy. _

_Of course, there was the _slight_ issue when Demonata-slayer met Urgok. Fortunately nothing a swift wrist slapping and explanation couldn't divert, but ultimately she trusted Kresh about as much as Uranus did._

_To think that wasn't the only familiar face to show up that day, either..._

XxX

"Sorry we're late," Ranma called as he entered the walled and abandoned construction site – their current training ground. "There were a few bumps on the way."

He slung Ami off his shoulder, gently placing her back on her feet, and the girl quickly made her way away from him. Bec and Kresh followed them, still keeping half an eye on each other, neither trusting the other not to suddenly plant a knife in their back. Honestly, they were acting like children, and Ranma made sure to keep himself mostly between the two of them.

As the Senshi and Endymion made their way over to him, Ami hiding behind Minako and Crystal and whispering furiously, Ranma brought his hand to the hidden mark over his left shoulder. Focusing just a bit of magic into it, he thought, _You can gate over now._

The words carried over the link to every Urgok, though they knew who he was speaking to. There was a loud ripping sound as both Hunters gated in, using the small amount of magic Nemesis was leaking into the air to reach him. Gating was a useful trick made by possible by his bond with them, a demon master's way of summoning familiar.

Immediately, Ranma grabbed Femern by the shoulders and bodily moved the Urgok to his left side, away from Bec. The redhead only gave Ranma a shrewd look before shaking her head.

"Ranma, who is this?" Crystal asked as they reached him. Everyone was here, Ranma found. Xycell and Yuka both stood near Setsuna, while the moon cats hung off to the side in human form.

At the question, Ranma scratched the base of his pigtail. _Setsuna is so gonna kill me if she finds out Bec is from the past._ "She's a friend, by the name Bec. She's damn good at magic, probably better than me, though she lacks the power a Senshi does." Ranma then introduced each of the others to Bec, carefully pointing at each so she could use her perfect memory to get them all first try.

"Where does he meet all these people?" Rei asked Makoto, gesturing to all the new additions to their group. It was true, Ranma realized, that he had turned their secluded Sailor Scout team into a force full of unusual beings, from the Space Keeper to benevolent Demonata. Thus were the changes he had wrought by his presence in the past.

He ignored the comment. "Now, starting today we are going to have a ton of ground to cover. You are all starting to get your attacks out faster, which is good, but as I mentioned yesterday, there have been changes in what we are facing. Our enemies can use magic, like Bec here. While you can combat most magic with your Senshi spells, it just makes more sense if you were to learn it too."

Several of the girls grew visibly excited at that, the prospect of learning to use _magic_ like in fairy tales, while others, Setsuna and Crystal, blinked in surprise. They knew he had never attempted training them in something like this before. Before they could ask why, he continued.

"Magic is dangerous," he started, then paused. "No... _My_ magic is dangerous. Bec here uses magic differently than I do, and I'm sure its much safer. Unfortunately, even if Bec was willing to try teaching you, we don't have the time for you to learn verbal spells and incantations. My way, once you get the hang of it you can do nearly anything."

Ranma glanced at Bec and saw her listening to him, obviously curious about other fields of magic. "This method is intent. I learned it when I lived on the Urgok's home world, and there were times I had nearly killed myself even with the close guiding of an expert. I'm not an expert, and each of you girls have even more magic to make bigger bangs when things go wrong.

"I want each of you to understand how _easily_ things can go wrong, too. Learning this way, you are teaching your magic to respond to intent. Intent is guided by thoughts, and the spell is crafted by the magic provided. Give too much magic, even if you only want enough fire to light a candle you may end up with an inferno that burns everything in a ten yard radius around you. Yourself included. If you are handling magic and a stray thought reaches you – just one small thought – your magic could respond to it. That can be anything harmless like changing someone's clothes to something deadly like stopping someone's heart from within."

Ranma paused for a moment, organizing his thoughts. He wanted to start these girls with raw magic, learning it and how to manipulate it. Then fire, learning how intent can turn raw magic into something else. Start them off small, let them feel how much raw magic could turn into how much flame. Teach them how to craft fire without burning themselves... If he was fortunate, they might be able to accomplish all that in one day.

"I'll give you all a practical demonstration of how magic can turn a fight before we start, but right now I want to make sure you understand the danger of this. Too much eagerness can make you careless. You get careless before you can properly handle this, people are going to get hurt or die. If I find anyone trying more than exactly as I instruct, I'm knocking you out." Young, undisciplined girls. He was just asking for trouble by teaching them this, but he had no _choice._

Right to it then. "Now, all of you spread out. Everyone who's not a Senshi, you guys can watch for now, but for the love of God, I don't want to see any fighting while we work. And don't worry Endymion, I have something for you to do too. I'll get to you in a minute."

They began to move, though Xycell remained in place. His hand coming to Haruka's shoulder stopped her too. Ranma's old friend watched him steadily. "We are leaving."

Ranma didn't react immediately, instead opening his bag and withdrawing Nemesis. Once he had her back in his hands, the serenity flowing into him, he set aside the bag. Finally, planting the weapon before him, Ranma regarded the Space Keeper.

It didn't take a genius to realize what he intended. The Space Keeper leaving with the girl who had proven to be the future Space Keeper? This was to be an apprenticeship. Whether Xycell meant to step down finally or, in worst case, he wanted the girl to know her Duty if he were to be cut down early (possibly by her), Ranma couldn't tell.

Losing an Outer like this would be a blow, but he had more than enough firepower to make up for it now. "For how long?"

"Weeks at minimum," Xycell said. "Years for the full training."

Ranma sighed. He noticed the blond had a pack over her shoulders. At least she was willing. "This is fair well, then."

"It is," Xycell acknowledged. "Should you require my assistance, you know how to summon me. Though, I ask that you refrain from doing so unless in the most dire of circumstances. The needs of the universe outweigh the needs of a single planet, even the Chaos Generator's."

Ranma nodded, extending a hand for the Space Keeper. "Stay safe, friend." He winked. "Keep the kid safe too. She's got a bit of a temper, but she means well."

Haruka only folded her arms and looked away with a huff, while Xycell stared at the hand for a few moments. Then, his pale and bony hand escaped his cloak to trade grips with him, and he nodded once. "Goodbye, Ranma."

Ranma turned to Haruka. "Hey, brat, make sure you've said your goodbyes to everyone before you go. And hurry back. We're gonna need you." Maybe not, but always better to be prepared.

Everyone was waiting for this great magic demonstration, but Ranma only stood there, watching as Haruka made her way over to Michiru and exchanged private words with her. They had likely already discussed it, but extended goodbyes were always hard. He would know – training trip with Genma, apprenticeship with Senshi Nemesis, the friends he would make on planets before moving onto the next...

Finally, Xycell space traveled away with her, leaving behind a teary eyed Neptune. Ranma focused back on the present. He had his own little soldiers to train, and Xycell had his. Either way, they were all getting forged into weapons to prepare for this threat.

"All of you, transform," Ranma called out. The Senshi turned their attention to him and did so. He tried to not focus too much on Setsuna and Crystal as they did.

Even little Hotaru, still struggling against her weakness and the gravity, was to be a part of this.

Once the eight Senshi were facing him, Ranma motioned Crystal to stand down. He had words for her too, but she already knew magic well enough. "Now, I want all of you to attack me. No holding back. I won't move an inch from this spot. Setsuna, Hotaru, you too."

There was a startled moment of silence. Then, Setsuna brought her Garnet Rod up, beginning her Senshi attack, and as she did, the rest followed.

Ranma watched the spells building up, Setsuna's already having been released. The sheer firepower of them all at once would be difficult to overcome, even for him. Fortunately, this wasn't about him stopping them. Using his scythe as a surrogate Henshin Rod, Ranma quickly shifted into his Senshi form, reached into the stars above to Nemesis's remains, ripped the magic out of her and flooded himself with it. He did all that quick as thought, in nearly an instant.

And then he turned the magic onto the poor Senshi.

A simple spell of intent, likely the most overused in his day besides fire. Vines ripped free from the ground, dozens of them. They coiled around the girls' legs, more snaking around their arms, and in a flash all seven of them were hauled off their feet and left dangling in the air. The spells they had begun to gather dissipated as they lost concentration, while Ranma used his scythe to cut through Setsuna's – he used to have to infuse the weapon with ki to do that, but now that Nemesis was in there, her entire being, it was already done.

Ranma grinned at the trapped Senshi. "As you can see, magic kinda works like that."

Setsuna got enough leverage to sever the vines holding her with her key, and upon landing she did a slash that cut free two others. Ranma didn't try stopping her, instead releasing the others and having the vines sink back into the ground.

"Vines like that are often used as snares, as you could guess. They are fairly easy to beat even without magic, as Setsuna demonstrated, but if there's enough of them holding you, the only way out _is_ magic. Simple blades of air to cut them, a jet of fire, withering them – you can get creative," Ranma said.

He turned to those that weren't Senshi. "Endymion, I want you to train with Kresh. You've got a hand for a sword, and with your ability to imbue things with magic, like those roses, Kresh can turn you into a real terror." The college student muttered a bit, but he nodded. "Bec, I don't have much for you. You can continue watching if you want, or you can go back home. I'll keep you posted if we run into trouble, though you already know what to do." He tossed her a spare communicator, to the annoyance of Luna.

The Priestess seemed fascinated by the technology, though she shook her head. "I'll stay here. I like being near magic again."

Fair enough. Ranma was fortunate enough to always be with Nemesis, surrounded by the magic she produced. He noticed that Crystal, the Senshi of the Moon, had approached him. He nodded at her. "I wanted to talk about your fight yesterday."

She arched an eyebrow at him. "Did I do wrong?"

"You were timid with your power," Ranma clarified, and she blinked at him. He gestured at their uniforms. "As a Senshi, the only limit to the near limitless reserves of our planets is our bodies. I can draw out Nemesis's magic, fill myself with it and use it, but eventually my body starts to fail if I use too much. Organs shut down, the systems falter, muscles lose control, nerves deaden... You know of this.

"You also told me that you haven't yet found a limit to how much the Ginzuisho can channel at once. You can guide the Moon's magic through it without ramifications, without the limits. The sheer power you should have been tossing around should have splattered those two from the start, even the Greater Demonata."

Crystal didn't lose any poise at his words, but she seemed to hesitate. "I was being careful with my power. I too was interested in how the ascension of a Senshi would affect my ability. There wasn't a need to do more at the time."

Ranma nodded understanding. "But Crystal, you have all that power and I think you don't know how to use it yet. Most of what you had used was just raw magic. This Big Bad we are going up against will either be a Demon Master or another like Metaria. The power you have now may be the only way to see this through."

"Big Bad?" Crystal asked, smiling slightly.

Ranma shrugged. "We needed a name for him. It works for now. Seriously though, I know you're the Queen and not my student, but I would like you working on your power while I help the girls. Just start with simple spells and give them enough juice to be overwhelming. Find out how to snap things like that off quickly, and then move up to bigger things – spells so complex and powerful they can't be countered by normal men on first try. That's the kind of spell that'll give even a Demon Master pause, and if you build an arsenal of them, we can give Big Bad a real fight."

"Spell crafting is a step up from "intent" magic, but I will heed your advice," Crystal admitted. Then, she smiled at him. "Intent magic. When I learned, it was called _will_ by my instructors. To will spells into existence, to guide and shape magic through will. And to accidentally wish ill-will towards another could be devastating if your magic responded."

A formal education versus Adafild's hands-on method was the difference, but the results were the same. Ranma nodded to her, and she stepped back, allowing the others to approach him for their lesson. The girls were all bubbling with excitement, though Setsuna remained calm and controlled.

Ranma's advice for Crystal was something he was planning on beginning for himself. Spell crafting wasn't too difficult, merely a way of easily repeating the same spell without having to focus so hard. Once one put a label on a series of results, the mind and thus magic could easily reproduce it without the person having to directly intend for each part. Establishing a 'spell' was just a quicker and easier way of focusing the intent, practically leaving it automatic. A name for the spell or an incantation wasn't necessary, but that too was just another way of making the focus easier.

He could intend for three rings of fire to form around a target, each a carefully restrained band of tremendous heat too bright to look at, and then cause them to constrict the target, likely searing the poor soul into crispy pieces. Or he could cast the Heaven's Claw on the target and follow up with something else in the same amount of time.

_Hmm... "Heaven's Claw." Might be some potential there,_ Ranma thought to himself.

Of course, he knew less about Bec's brand of magic. There was a language out there that already guided magic, a phrase that would produce a certain result regardless of intent. Ranma had heard only bits of this type, things like most of the phrases were a gathering of magic and only a few parts the actual spell, but it wasn't something that could be translated to where one could see the difference.

"Mercury, point to your planet," Ranma began. The girl gave a start at being singled out, though her 'academic eagerness' for learning magic seemed to overcome her earlier displeasure of being bodily taken here. "You're a Senshi. You should be able to feel where your planet is at all times. Go ahead, point to it."

After a hesitant moment, the blue haired girl pointed up, somewhere near the sun. "It's there."

Ranma nodded without following her finger. "Venus, you too. All of you, point to your planets." They all did, leading to an odd tableau as they were all pointing in random directions, some of them straight down into the ground for the planets beyond.

This would be the hardest part for them, Ranma knew. "Good. Now, I want you to focus on those planets you are pointing at. Whatever sense it is that tells you where they are, use it to feel your planet. Familiarize yourself with it, study it. Look for its power. When you find something that feels like an endless sea of energy, you've about found it."

The girls' eyes all began to glaze, stare off into nothing as they concentrated. Senshi Mercury had even closed her eyes to focus, while Senshi Jupiter looked westward towards her unseen planet as if it would help. Ranma knew it would take them some time, so he was planning on stepping back and talking with some of the others in the meantime. Setsuna, however, stopped him.

"I feel it," she said, not long after they began. Her red eyes focused back on him, and her lips turned into a satisfied smile.

Ranma should have known she would accomplish it so quick. She wasn't new at this like the other girls were. She would have found Pluto's magic already as part of her Senshi training, years ago. He nodded to her, acknowledging it, though he would wait for the others before continuing his lesson.

After they all found their planets' magic, he would teach them how to draw from it. That was their right as Senshi, to have access to it. He would get them to take a small amount to start with and put it inside themselves, get them to understand the limits to how much the body could hold at once and what continued exposure eventually started to do to them.

Next would be learning how to release that magic, either back to the planet or outside themselves. That would start their training with raw magic, maybe shaping them into little orbs and make a little game like a snowball fight out of it. That seemed a decent way to get them used to drawing magic and expelling it.

Then would come the fire. Releasing the magic as flames, no longer raw. He would teach them how to use intent to render the flames harmless to themselves, while still a real fire for others. That was the part things could get dangerous, if the girls messed something up and ended with severe burns. He needed to keep the magic they were handling small, but eventually they would work their way up into real sized attacks.

And so began Ranma's training in magic for the Sailor Scouts.

XxX

"Good!" Ranma shouted, using his magic to extinguish the torrent of flame coming at him. Senshi Venus was the caster, the girl panting and sweating but determined.

Ranma spun in place and held up his left hand. He did the same to the inferno aimed at his back, expelling the flames all the way to their source at Senshi Neptune's palm. The aquamarine haired girl had thrown herself into the training with abandon, likely to distract herself from the temporary loss of her lover.

Drawing more magic in quick handfuls from Nemesis's ruins, Ranma turned again to stop the flames coming from either side of him – a decently coordinated attack done by Mercury and Mars. His sense for magic that was out told him of something starting above him, and Ranma looked up to see a sudden ball of flame descending upon his head.

That would have been Pluto, he knew for sure. The woman always timed herself for opportunity, and only she had enough skill currently to cast fireballs at a distance.

Ranma grinned in the thrill of this fight, the searing heat of the air around him not affecting him much. Nemesisian temperature tolerance worked well for heat and cold. A thought canceled Setsuna's flame and the one Hotaru had sent following.

With a final burst of magic, Ranma slammed the base of his scythe in the ground and sent a pulse of magic out of him, canceling all the fire in the area. "ENOUGH!"

The girls all stopped, little wisps of smoke leaving their palms. Not a one of them didn't look exhausted, and a few had grown pale in the face – a physical sign of overexposure to the magic. Setsuna of course was least affected, though she was panting and leaning against her Garnet Rod.

Ranma smiled at them, nodding. They had all done well this day. Albeit, they had started at nine in the morning and the sun was beginning to set now. Regardless, they had made much progress, especially for a single day. There hadn't been any accidents either, save for a small burn along Venus's palm in the beginning due to a mistake.

He told the girls as much, congratulating them. He gave a hard-eyed warning against practicing further on their own, getting the moon cats to promise to watch over their charges, and then dismissed them to go back home. He knew they would be eating ungainly amounts, the lunches they had brought not nearly enough for how much energy they spent that day.

"Mars, Jupiter, both of you stay here for a few moments," Ranma called out as the now untransformed Senshi began making their weary way back to their homes. The two girls paused, glancing at each other, then returned over to him.

Setsuna appeared to be waiting for him, standing near the construction cite's exit with her arms crossed and watching him after she exchanged partings with Crystal. Bec had left as well, leaving the Urgoks less tense as they also waited for him. Yuka had returned her glamor and disappeared somewhere.

The moment the girls stopped before him, Ranma heard the distinct sound of swooping wings before there were three landings behind him. He smiled slightly.

"All that fire you were tossing around, I have half a mind to think you are preparing to kill me again," a young voice remarked, amused.

Ranma could see the two Senshi's reactions to the arrivals, eyes wide and awed. That was only for a moment before Rei turned suspicious, but Ranma didn't let her take them as threats.

"I was wondering how long you were going to stand there watching, Saffron," Ranma said finally, beginning to turn. He could feel three people: Saffron, Kiima, and one other he didn't know. "And how long it would take you to come find me, now that I'm back."

The last person was without wings, but Ranma had spent enough time on Jupiter to recognize the different ki pattern to her. The girl had orange hair, stylized similar to the Amazons, with green eyes that seemed radiant in the remaining light. A fairly beautiful woman too, though there was a certain cast to her eyes that Ranma had seen in those that had lived deceptively long – the hard gaze of someone who had lived _too_ long and seen too much. Setsuna's eyes showed that, sometimes.

That girl smiled when she saw Makoto, and the gesture was genuine. It reached all the way to her hard eyes, dispelling the edge as tears formed. "Ayame-sama, you really are back..." She fell to her knee and bowed her head, a tear falling, then brought an arm across her chest in an age-old salute.

The brown haired girl was obviously embarrassed by that and didn't know what to do. Saffron waved at the kneeling girl in annoyance. "Stand up, Feyri. She doesn't have all her memories back yet." He was in his young body, and the Phoenix king turned a polite bow towards Rei. "My name is Saffron, and the silver haired one Kiima. We are former subjects to your past self, when you went by the name of Ame-sama."

"Wh-what?" Rei asked, looking just as surprised as her friend. She pointed at the winged beings. "You're from _Mars?"_

"We are the last of the Moon Kingdom," Feyri nodded. "Myself and Saffron are the last former citizens, though there are Jovian and Martian descendants where we hail from. Kiima is the last immediate descendant of former citizens."

By then, Setsuna had reached them. "The survivors who had settled in the Bayankala Mountain Range," she noted. "What brings you here?"

Feyri shrugged a shoulder. "A matriarch of my people recited Ranma's story to us and mentioned the fight ahead of him and the Senshi. The recital implied Queen Metaria's return. For 3,000 years I have hidden myself in that valley, never exposing myself to any true danger, subtly guiding the descendants of my people as if that were some worthy task. I feel it is finally time for me to do something truly worthy, to help fight back, and Saffron came with me."

"I got a question," Ranma mentioned. "A couple, actually. First, how did you all survive the extermination? Did any of the other planets manage the same? Nemesisians?"

Nemesis herself answered that before the others could. _"You are the last of my people, dearest Avatar. I can feel as much."_

Feyri shook her head. "Not that we encountered. The circumstances of our escape were luck. Two others and I were guarding the Gate to the tunnels when Ayame-sama herself came running. She screamed of evacuation. We sent the message along our communication lines, but the gas began even as we on the outside were reaching the vessels. It only took moments for our planet to die, while we barely made it to the airlock of the shuttle."

Saffron shrugged a shoulder. "They tried to purge Mars with fire. I may have been replaced as the Senshi's apprentice, but I still had my Kinjakan and Gekkaja. I protected everyone I could, but in the end I could only get no more than a dozen to a shuttle."

Ranma nodded. "And the second question, what was with Evil Lord Saffron when we met last month? And what was with the lack of _Martian_ when I was there?"

The kid had the decency to blush as he coughed into a hand. "Try Spoiled Child Saffron. As with all my rebirths, I would not regain my memories of the Moon Kingdom and my former lives until I reached the age of twenty. The reason I have them now is the changes you brought the past; it caused the memories to come early. Kiima herself knows little of her heritage, only what we've were able to tell her, and among us, she is the last to know such things."

_Memories when twenty... Wait a second, rebirths? I forgot!_ Ranma's eyes met Setsuna's. "We need to speak with Crystal about the spell she had used to send the Senshi and the royal court forward to the future to live new lives. The immortalizing curse she placed on the Senshi..."

Apparently before Ranma arrived, Hotaru had used her suicide Senshi ability. The Silence included her in its destruction, just like Ranma had torn Saffron to pieces with the _Hiryu Shoten Ha,_ and yet in the end, both were babies. The ability to be immediately reborn after death sounded impossible, yet... Crystal had mentioned it, had planned on placing the curse on him so he too could fight Metaria in the future, yet he had rebounded it back to her so she herself lived the backlash of the spell.

And it was a curse. To live forever was always ambiguous, but one could never step down from their duty as a Senshi, not until death. With that curse, they were locked into that duty until the end of time and beyond. And as Crystal had informed him, the only way to break the curse was to destroy the Ginzuisho itself, that which was powerful enough to cast it in the first place.

"So are you saying I had wings, back in the Moon Kingdom?" Rei asked curiously, eying the Phoenix people.

Ranma smiled slightly. Rei's past self, Ame, had been a close friend of his when he was younger. She had been much older than him of course, had the appropriate haughtiness of a queen, was a little biased towards men, but she had been his _nee-san_ for two years, and student for another two. And yes, she did have wings. "Yes, you-" Ranma stopped suddenly, more words from Crystal coming back to him.

Those that died were to be sent forward, to when Metaria was breaking free again. They would be born to new parents, and their bodies would be the form of those native to that planet. If he had been among those sent, however, he needn't have worried about his strength because he would always have his Nemesisian form when he transformed back into a Senshi. If he had still been alive at the time, then he would only bear the immediate rebirths, always Nemesisian.

Ranma had used that information to puzzle out Hotaru's weakness. Under the same logic... "Mars, you still have the wings. They are just pulled inside."

The girl blinked at him, but Ranma grew excited. "Transform into your Senshi form."

Rei seemed uncertain, but she did so, standing before them as Senshi Mars. Saffron smiled proudly at her, tapping his arm across his chest in the old salute.

Ranma walked behind her and checked the _fuku_. He didn't see any slits for the wings, but that didn't mean they weren't there. He felt along the fabric around the shoulder blades, and with a surge of triumph, he found a seamless cut in the material, practically invisible until he pulled it apart. The cut was in the perfect shape for her wings.

He looked up to Setsuna, who was still transformed as Senshi Pluto. "Hey, Setsuna, do the _fuku_ have bras underneath?"

The woman arched an eyebrow at him. "Why don't you just check instead of asking?"

"Is that an invitation?" Ranma quipped. Perhaps Nemesis was beginning to rub off on him.

Setsuna gave him a blank stare. "...You know what I meant."

He did know – check his cursed form's _fuku_ – yet he only grinned lopsidedly. Setsuna sighed. "They don't."

"Damn, the hard way then." He activated his curse, turning himself into a girl, and turned Saffron around so the boy was facing away from them. She turned back to Rei. "Take off your top. Since we're both girls, it should be fine."

Both Rei and Makoto stared at her, gobsmacked. Setsuna laughed quietly behind a hand at Ranma. "Your tact in this department is astonishing as always, Ranma."

The redhead shrugged a shoulder. "Well, she ain't got nothing I don't, so it should be fine. Besides, I only need to see her back, nothing to get embarrassed about."

There was the usual flurry of things, explanations and the like, before they moved to a bit more private area of the construction cite and Rei consented to the examination for her wings. Ranma was surprised at their reaction to her transformation, though. As usual the Starlights had been brought up, but for the first time it was curiosity, not fear-induced shouting and random attacks.

Ranma still had never been given the story as to what the Starlights had done during the Moon Kingdom to provoke that reaction, either.

Mars had been one of the planets Ranma studied on while a Senshi apprentice, and Martian physiology had been one of the subjects he had needed to learn. However, while he knew that the ability to pull the wings inside involved ki – not an anatomical distinction – he didn't know the specifics.

Ranma studied Rei's back, her _fuku_ pulled down to her waist. She didn't see any sign of the wings. Even feeling along the skin like she had the cloth didn't betray their presence.

"You almost done yet?" Rei asked, a blush on her cheeks.

Ranma shook her head. "Feyri, come take a look at this." The aged Jovian approached. Ranma drew two crescents on either of Rei's shoulder blades with a finger. "I can feel a small buildup of ki along both of those, but I have no idea how to get those wings out. I figure you Amazons know more about this than me, and I'd rather we not have to bring in Saffron to get her wings out."

Mentioning that, the priestess's blush deepened, and she shook her head fiercely.

Feyri hummed as she also examined the spots Ranma pointed out. The woman's eyes turned to her after a moment. "The boundaries between planets was strict, as you know. We know next to nothing of the Martians and their wings. I can sever the ki there, but that's along the hope that the ki is only holding them in."

Ranma turned to Kiima. "Are you _sure_ you don't know this trick in hiding your wings?"

The captain gave her a level stare. "If I did, do you think I would need to use Jusenkyo to disguise myself?"

Ranma grunted, then left the uncompleted shack to the outside, where Saffron waited with the Urgoks. "Hey, the ki buildup where the wings are supposed to be, are there any problems in severing that?"

The boy shrugged. "It might work. It also might sever her wing. Ask if the girl knows how to channel ki herself. Get her to channel ki into the area if she can. She doesn't have to do anything specific, there's only one thing that can happen if she does."

Ranma nodded and ducked back in. "Hey, Mars, you know how to channel ki?" To her surprise, the girl nodded. Ki manipulation wasn't too common on Earth, as she remembered. "Channel some to your shoulder blades, were we found that buildup."

Ranma felt her do so, and suddenly Feyri had to jump back as the left wing sprouted forth. It was a brown hawk wing, as Ranma remembered. She smiled as Rei turned towards the sudden wing, shock on her face. There was another movement of ki inside her, and then the right wing burst out like the first.

Rei jumped to her feet, wings going with her. Her eyes were wide as she craned her neck in trying to look at them, watching them flap weakly and sporadically. The girl nearly squealed at the sight of them, turning a wide grin towards Makoto.

"I have _wings!"_ she shouted, excited.

Ranma coughed politely. "Might want to fix your _fuku_ before you run outside like that."

The girl paused, arms still uplifted in her excitement. She looked down at her bared chest, blush coming to her cheeks again. She eeped and spun, crossing an arm over her chest.

XxX

_The last founder of the Amazons, Feyri, mentioned that she had a residence ready for her, Saffron, and Kiima. Why did that unsettle me more than her presence did? The Jovian people could be trusted some, but Amazons..._

_Saffron would be straightforward. That's the kind of person he is. Feyri would be spinning nets around, likely trying to get me married into the tribe in the end. The problem is, I don't take well to manipulation anymore._

XxX

The sun had slipped below the horizon finally, bathing Juuban in a dusty twilight, the clouds still reflecting bright oranges, pinks, and purples. After the excitement involving Rei and her re-found wings, Ranma finally left with Setsuna. He had his black bag over his shoulder behind him, inside which Setsuna knew was his scythe, while trailing them was the largest of his Urgoks, the one named Kresh. Setsuna noticed the friendly demon, under disguise, was giving them enough distance for privacy.

Which was just perfect for her intentions this evening.

For the moment, Setsuna allowed her thoughts to turn towards recent developments. In one day, their force had changed drastically. Three new fighters had joined them, one a magic user good enough that Ranma respected her, one the old Martian apprentice Senshi-turned-ambassador with two respectable magic heirlooms, and the last a Jovian gatekeeper associated as one of the three founders of the Amazons.

The most affecting change, however, was the Senshi beginning to learn magic, herself included. After devoting an entire day's worth of time and hands-on attention, they could only manage tossing around unrefined magic and fire, though Setsuna suspected she could do more with what was already given. Still, this would change the Senshi, especially the way they fought.

She could feel distant Pluto, the icy rock an immense reservoir of magic just waiting to be tapped. Once able to command that power, she knew she would be near unbeatable. All the Senshi would be. Between them and their allies – Yuka, the Urgoks, Space Keeper, the newcomers – they were shaping into a force even the encroaching Demonata wouldn't be able to overcome. Why hadn't Ranma taught them this before?

She glanced over at him, seeing the hard face as unreadable as always, his thoughts always outside her ability to gauge. His stormy blue eyes not betraying the thoughts just behind them, yet still so beautiful. He was handsome too, in that confident roguish way of his...

_Not yet._

Idly, one hand went over a pocket on her clothing. The letter from her past self. As always, her thoughts were never far from it. Just what was that woman trying to guide her towards? Surely not that Crystal Tokyo, despite Queen Meioh's insistence, yet its purpose was to avoid the destruction that seemingly the other half of the futures showed. There had to be something, something of little likelihood, that it was trying to bring to her attention.

The words of the letter began to play out in her mind again, already memorized from her careful study of it and the many times she reread it:

_My dearest Setsuna,_

_This information I cannot make directly forthright, for reasons you already know, although I shall present it in order of relevance. On your return, you __must__ convince Queen Serenity to allow you visit to Crystal Tokyo. You __must__ heed the Queen of that kingdom, for meditation on her warning will grant what this letter cannot. At the time Ranma decides to destroy the barrier, he __must__ be stopped – the loss of the barrier results in destruction as surely as leaving it in its present state. R-_

Ranma's voice interrupted the recital: "I'm surprised. I had thought that after 3,000 years you would have picked up learning magic."

During their silent walk, Ranma had been watching Setsuna, and he found her uncharacteristically quiet. Quiet for him at least. Apparently she had built quite the persona when dealing with the other Senshi.

Setsuna shrugged a shoulder. "Learning was an interest of mine, but bound at the Time Gates, observing honest practitioners to the extent of learning it myself was near impossible. There were also other matters that required my attention."

"Like what?" Ranma asked, genuinely curious as to what Setsuna had done during their time apart – besides the various enemies of the Sailor Scouts.

"Things," Setsuna answered innocently, brandishing a mysterious smile when Ranma turned to her. After a moment of holding it, she laughed and said, "Kingdoms rose and fell, technology began its slow ascent, philosophers and geniuses shared wisdom... I kept track of the present world, which was a task in itself. However, I was wondering why you didn't teach us magic as a part of your training all those years ago."

Wryly, Ranma smiled, having felt this question would be coming. "The things I trained you in I had felt would better counter the Combat Squad. I had no way of knowing they would get some power-up that allowed them to steal magic from the planets. Without that, your Senshi attacks should have been enough to counter whatever spells they sent."

Setsuna studied him for a moment, and Ranma knew she had seen what he tried to hide. "That's not the only reason, is it?"

"Mercury alone committed three assassination attempts, all subtle, while both Uranus and Neptune would have killed me gladly had they been skilled enough to defeat me. The idea of me teaching you all magic, removing my only advantage over you besides simple skill, seemed suicidal."

Setsuna understood. The life of a turncoat was never easy, and trust came hard to find. Instead of saying such, she regarded Ranma with curiosity. "Three attempts? I was only aware of two."

Ranma snorted. "Hot springs, while the Senshi and Queen were all bathing. While none of you could have beaten me single-handedly, Crystal could have smeared me across the floor if she had been offended by my appearance. I believe the law of a male peeping on female nobility was execution."

"Serenity-sama has always been an unusual Queen." Setsuna smiled, nearly blushing again as she remembered the shock and embarrassment of Ranma suddenly flying from the ceiling – naked – into the hot springs, him trying valiantly not to let his eyes stray as he blundered about in his explanation of how he got there. Queen Serenity, merely watching the happenings with amusement and not in the least embarrassed by her nudity.

Ranma also smiled. "Yeah." The woman was always formal, dignified without the usual queenly haughtiness, an expert in court politics, and dangerously powerful – her magical ability only one facet of that power. However, despite those respectable qualities demanded in her place as Queen of the Sol System, Crystal the woman had her quirks, the most surprising of which was her carefully hidden playfulness.

A comfortable silence began to stretch between them. Setsuna felt the time had come. She felt just a moment's flutter of nervousness before she steadied herself.

"Ranma," she began, keeping her eyes on the path before her. However, she did notice him turn to her. She took a breath. "Would you ever consider me romantically?"

Ranma nearly stumbled. "What?" Surprise was obvious in his voice.

Setsuna forced herself to meet his eyes, and she gave a brief laugh. "It's not often the Senshi of Pluto finds herself attracted to someone. We've already been on several dates. I was wondering if you were interested in taking that further."

Ranma hesitated. "I... Setsuna, I'm already in a relationship right now with Nemesis. She told me she didn't care if I had one with someone else too, but..."

Setsuna felt the rejection. _I hadn't even considered he might have found someone else already. _She shook her head. "No, you're right. If you are with Nemesis, I won't intrude." Nemesis? Setsuna only faintly recalled her, and even then she had assumed the planetary sentience had died with the planet. _She_ was with Ranma?

"Sorry," Ranma mumbled, turning away from Setsuna. The shock of her actually bringing this up was fading, leaving his mind whirling with sudden thoughts. Setsuna was actually interested in him, and he... Dammit, he was with Nemesis. He couldn't deny that he felt something for Setsuna though.

Nemesis had mentioned he could leave her at any time if he found himself wishing for someone else, like Setsuna right now. However, not only did he feel that wouldn't be fair to Nemesis, he couldn't deny his own budding feelings for her. Leaving her just wasn't an option. Both, then? Ranma gave a mental snort at the idea. That was just Nemesis being herself.

Still, he couldn't help but wish Setsuna hadn't rejected his almost offer when he mentioned Nemesis's willingness.

The silence between them for the continuing walk began to stretch, the both of them carefully not quite looking at the other just yet. Finally, Setsuna just blew out a sigh and a small smile found its way to her lips. "We really should be mature enough for this to not turn things awkward between us."

"You're the one getting awkward," Ranma lied.

Setsuna laughed at his childish retort. "We're talking about maturity here, Ranma."

She wasn't really that surprised at his turn down, Setsuna found. The man had had a literal harem of girls offering themselves to him, all willing to share, and he had rejected them all. Sure, she and Ranma were familiar and had grown close, but why had she assumed her chances would be any better than those girls? She wondered how long he and Nemesis had been together now but declined against asking.

Still, she couldn't help but feel that she had just waited too long in asking him, and that was why Nemesis got there first.

Setsuna briefly thought of his other comment, Nemesis's own willingness to share his attentions, but she laughed the idea down. Regardless of Queen Serenity's necessary law allowing polygamy, that was _not_ her thing, and even if it was, she didn't know the being named Nemesis well enough to ever consider joining her in such a relationship.

XxX

"_A hell of a day," Ranma sighed, resting on his back with his arms behind his head._

_He and Nemesis were in their usual meeting spot on the planet Nemesis, the dream-constructed reality realistic in all five senses. The purple grass was soft beneath him, even with the triple gravity. Nemesis was snuggled under his left arm as he stared up at the light green sky and low clouds. The peculiar smells of a Nemesisian forest wafted as a steady, musky scent in the cool, gentle breeze. The distant sun, noticeably smaller than Earth's, beat a mild warmth down on them._

"_Let's see, Bec joined us, Saffron and that girl joined us, the Senshi are actually learning magic, we may or may not have determined what that mystery mage is doing, Mars got her wings back, Xycell is gone with Uranus off to who knows where, and to top it off, _Setsuna_ of all girls admitted to an attraction. I'm half surprised Ryoga didn't break down the walls when we got home and demand a duel," Ranma listed, exasperated._

"_Do you wish to talk about it, before we begin?" Nemesis asked, gently tracing a circle on his chest as they lay there._

"_Talk about Setsuna?" Ranma assumed, to which Nemesis confirmed. He shook his head. "There ain't nothing to talk about."_

"_Oh, Ranma..." Nemesis sighed, though she accepted his wish to leave the subject alone. "Let's begin then."_

_Ranma turned his gaze away from the sky to see the grin forming on her face. He watched as she lifted her hand to snap her fingers, and the whole world shifted suddenly._

_They were standing on a massive plateau, the rocky ground a rust red and stretching out for several miles in all directions. While the jagged cliffs of the formation ventured high in the sky, several hundred meters above the ground, there were mountains in the distance that reached higher, nearly gouging the uniquely colored sky. The mountains were colored in life that died the higher the eyes rose, to where they peaked in snowy tips._

_It was obvious they were still on Nemesis, though Ranma had never seen this place before. He raised an eyebrow at the woman, now standing a dozen yards away. "Where are we?"_

"_The Wilderness, near the south eastern borders of it. The land left uncategorized, mainly used to house my various species away from human civilization. Also the land used for wars, be it civil, insurrection, or in defense against an invading planet. An appropriate location for the battle we intend to wage for your training, correct?" Nemesis was smiling, her words soft as if she had been next to him yet carrying the distance. Whether that was an advantage of the dream or just one of her many abilities, Ranma's didn't know._

_Ranma nodded at her words, lowering himself into a stance. He was recovering old styles now that his right arm was healed, and he settled low with his left hand extended towards Nemesis, the right behind him with the scythe. He smirked at her, much more confident than he felt. "Let's do it."_

_To be honest, he had never seen Nemesis fight before. He didn't even know if she did or even _could_ fight, yet she had assured him, teasingly, that she could rise to the challenge. He had no idea what to expect._

_As soon as the words left his mouth, an amazing wind kicked up against him. Ranma braced himself against it, eyes remaining on his opponent, watching as her dress danced wildly at the gusts yet the woman remained unaffected. In the distance, storm clouds began gathering behind the snowy peaks of the dark mountains._

_The storming weather grew violent, buffeting Ranma and Nemesis both, the latter still showing no sign of it touching her beyond her flying hair and whipping dress. Thunder boomed in the distance as the clouds plowed in their direction, moving unnaturally fast in the winds. In no time, lightning was visible, touching down increasingly closer to them with accompanying roars that grew louder and louder._

_Ranma was forced to squint and settled himself lower, the winds picking up dust from the plateau and pressing against him with enough force to unsteady even his weight under Nemesis's own gravity. The black and grey clouds covered the sky, rippling with color as lightning crackled. It was close enough now that there was practically no time between the flash and thunder, and the sound was deep enough to be felt through Ranma's entire body._

_Amidst the chaos of the storm, the howling winds began cycling around Nemesis, and slowly the woman ascend from the ground. As she did, tremors shook the very planet, all of nature bending to the very whims of the powerful being towering over Ranma. She was the goddess where he was the lowly mortal._

_Let it be said Nemesis enjoyed theatrics and dramatic appearances as much as Ranma did._

_Even in the dream, Ranma could feel the magic of Nemesis beneath him, the entire planet an endless source. He drew from it, slowly reaching into it and gently cupping handfuls like water from a lake. He used the task to keep calm, focusing himself away from all the distractions Nemesis was evoking._

_He thrust his intent into the air around him, chilling the area to below freezing, and shouted, _"FUBUKI SOUSOU!"_ The mix of ki, negative ki, and magic happened near instantly, and he thrust the misting sphere at the levitating woman._

_Nemesis lowered both hands towards him, palms out, and suddenly the cyclone of air around her twisted down her arms. Twin tornadoes, visible by the dust they sucked in, rushed towards the attack. Just as they made contact, the sky itself cried its fury and an impossible conjoining of six bolts of lightning impacted the orb from above._

_Ranma watched, nearly awed, as his most powerful attack slowly tried to churn its way through the opposition, grinding its steady way against the winds, yet failed in overcoming it all and allowed itself to be grounded by the lightning. It exploded into the red rock of the plateau, whipping a wave of icy concussion at Ranma and Nemesis both._

_With an idle thought, Ranma cleared the frost from his form. He was suddenly nervous as to how this fight might go._

_The skies split and spilled its rain, fat droplets hammering down in the gravity and fierce winds. Like all of Nemesis's natural waters, the rain was warm, leaving Ranma in his birth form yet soaking him nearly instantly. The pelting drops began obscuring Ranma's vision, not that he could miss the swirling display of power surrounding Nemesis._

_There was a shift in that center of power, a beat of stillness, before Nemesis leaned herself forward and rocketed at an insane speed towards Ranma. The distance had originally been short between them and had expanded since the start of the fight, but that mattered little as Nemesis reached him in the blink of an eye._

_Ranma blocked her simple punch, only to be thrown back due to the power behind her momentum. He was in his Senshi form, meaning he had the bracers of Nemesis's strongest metal – black copper – yet still his arm burned and ached from the impact. He stopped his impromptu flight by dragging his feet and a hand along the ground, and looking back for his opponent, he found Nemesis already upon him again._

Shit!_ Blocking was out of the question, so he instead deflected the blow and countered with his own. Nemesis had an amused grin on her face as she easily rolled her shoulder away and grabbed a hold of his arm. Knowing the dangers of that, Ranma quickly tried freeing his arm, snapping it back towards him and bringing his leg up for a kick._

_Nemesis was fluid as she used his tug to move herself towards him, sidestepping his body and kick to get behind him, still with his arm and locking it at its extremities. Instead of breaking it, as Ranma feared she might, Nemesis only laughed – somehow audible over the winds, rain, and thunder – and she leaned into him to kiss his cheek._

_Ranma's trick to escape that specific hold froze as he realized what she was doing. It only lasted for an instant, though. Something struck the back plate of his armor, and his body tumbled forward over the rocky ground. Ranma felt dazed as he halted the roll, but the moment he started gathering his thoughts again, he saw Nemesis thrust her arm down from over her head._

_There was a blinding flash and pain – lots of pain. Ranma felt his body convulse once before it all ended. It felt like a sledgehammer had just hit his shoulder, but looking only showed a strange black smoking mark on his white bodysuit. _Did Nemesis just call down a lightning bolt on me?

_His danger sense flared, the trusted instinct, and Ranma threw himself to the side. Wild eyes saw several more bolts of lightning strike where he had been standing, and he turned to see an evil grin on Nemesis's face. Another cyclone of wind began reaching for him, this time collecting mud from the plateau and water, while she lowered her other hand at him in the same gesture for the earlier lightning._

_Ranma used the magic inside him to quickly divert the lightning from above him, while at the same time he summoned a gale of wind, so much weaker than her hurricane, to attempt to steady the air around him._

_Nemesis had literally observed the training of every warrior on a planet that raised _only_ warriors for the last several hundred years. There was no way Ranma could beat her with just his martial arts or weapons training, not to mention the three ESG held him back._

_Vines and fire. Ranma tried snaring her legs and pulling the woman from her whirlwind back to the ground, but as she easily avoided them – as he expected – Ranma called forth torrents of fire, even knowing about the rains. He watched, dismayed, as Nemesis only laughed and condensed the rain around them to extinguish them flames._

_Nemesis vanished suddenly, and without any warning Ranma felt a presence on his back. He heard Nemesis whisper in his ear, "Let me show you real heat."_

_He whipped his body around, scythe arching in a vicious decapitating blow to where he knew her head to be. He missed, seeing no one there. Nemesis suddenly sprang up from a crouch below his eye line, much too close for him to retaliate against, and she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him again._

The woman is insane!_ The thought was verified when Nemesis suddenly shoved Ranma back, sending him flying again. Ranma watched, dull eyed, as she lowered a hand, closed a fist, and thrust it back up. There was a rumbling beneath him then. Ranma panicked and immediately darted away from his spot, looking back just in time to see an eruption of lava and rock spew forth violently, hissing steam as it came in contact with the rains._

_Ranma's eye twitched at the miniature volcano Nemesis created. Another bolt of lightning touched down on him, and his eye twitched again._

_Some time later, things had not improved much for Ranma. He laid flat on his back, wind knocked out of him, half charred, half cooked internally, half drowned, half frozen, nerves misfiring from too many electrical discharges, exhausted beyond redemption, and most certainly unable to move no matter how hard he tried to will his body. Nemesis sat atop him, straddling his stomach and restraining his arms, and her still perfectly maintained green hair was tossed over to one side as she bent to kiss a spot on his neck._

_Around them, the plateau could no longer be labeled as such. Craters, an active volcano, a geyser-fed river, a new mountain, an odd pumpkin patch, and the fact that more than three quarters of the landmass was missing made it something else entirely. _

_Ranma let out a wet cough, unsurprised to see _smoke_ leaving his lungs – a paradox he didn't want to explain to himself – and groaned, "You are by far the _universe's_ most abusive girlfriend. Ever."_

_Nemesis lifted her head to beam down at him, and just as she did, the clouds behind her dissipated and alighted with golds and whites as the sun broke through them, constructing a sudden breathtaking scene that framed Nemesis's already impressive beauty. There was stillness in that moment too: no rain, winds, or thunder. Like that, golden rays of sunlight behind her causing her hair to nearly glow, she said, "You know I love you even so."_

_It was cheating being able to so perfectly manipulate your surroundings in such a way, Ranma knew, but the effect Nemesis could produce in doing so was simply so amazing. Adrenaline still beat through him from the fight, and the sudden peace and beauty had him react on impulse. He leaned up and captured her lips, and Nemesis lowered herself to him gladly._

"_I can come back another time, if you wish," a voice mentioned from the side._

_Nemesis and Ranma broke apart immediately, both turning towards the voice with wide eyes. No one was supposed to be here except them, unless they had constructed such a person as dreams allowed._

_It was a woman, kneeling on a patch of _green_ grass next to the new river. Her hair was a reddish brown and curled slightly, eyes a penetrative lead grey. Her features were sharp, though her expression was amused as she peered over at them, enhanced by her rosy cheeks. Her sky blue dress was rather modest compared to Nemesis's sundress, with a high neckline and the bottom easily reaching her ankles. The woman was beautiful, though expressed in the manner of a reserved mother – a bearing Nemesis herself took at times._

"_Terra..." Nemesis breathed out in shock, then quickly gathered herself and removed herself from Ranma._

_Ranma himself took a few moment's breather to gather his strength before also rising to a sit, facing the new woman. So that was Terra, the only other planet that had given itself sentience at the time of the Moon Kingdom's fall._

_Terra gave them both a smile as a cup of steaming tea appeared in her hands, and she took a moment to take a sip. "Now, I'm sure you have questions for me, Nemesis. I certainly do for you... and you, Ranma Uzuki-Saotome."_

_Ranma glanced over at Nemesis and saw she had changed herself, foregoing playfulness for maturity. It was a drastic personality shift but one she made often, from Nemesis the woman to Nemesis the planet. She was kneeled next to him, her smile demure yet radiant. It wouldn't be right to say she seemed to age in the change, like a youthful girl into a full woman, yet her mere presence gave it the appearance of such._

_The scenery around them changed too, from the devastated battleground to... something odd. On Ranma's side, with Nemesis, was what he recognized from the planet. They were seated on the purple grass, the squat trees with dark green bark and autumn red leaves, the familiar scents and feel of Nemesis, a light green sky above like Nemesis's own dress. Across from them, however, on Terra's side was strictly earthen terrain: lively green grass, redwood trees, blue sky, everything appearing brighter as Earth was closer to the sun._

_Nemesis smiled and held out her hands. "Terra, it's been so long."_

_Terra reached up and clasped hands with her, smiling back. "It has, Nemesis. To be honest, I had assumed you dead, all those years ago. Which brings me to my first question, on how you survived." She still had her tea, taking a sip after the question and watching Nemesis._

_Nemesis's smile dimmed slightly at the reminder of the loss of her true body, the entire planet and all its life formerly under her care. "My avatar preserved my being inside the scythe he holds out in the waking world, a transfer of my planetary heart crystal before the eradication of my body from the _Eris Ascension."

_Terra raised an eyebrow as she stopped there, clearing expecting Nemesis to have explained more. "...I see. As for why I could no longer detect you for the last 3,000 years...?"_

"_An arrangement of the forces outside _our_ control-" She said 'our' in a way Ranma could tell referred beings like her and Terra. "-led to an absence of existence for those years."_

_Terra remained calm, taking another sip of tea before saying, "A temporary absence of existence. A violation of those forces, along the Laws of Space and Time I believe. The Keepers were involved, then. Your reluctance is understandable."_

_There was a silence as the two women regarded each other. Ranma couldn't tell if there was a tension between them or not. If Nemesis was any example, they weren't 'normal' women. As if said normal women weren't confusing enough to understand at times._

_Finally, Nemesis said, "It is the barrier surrounding the planet that has depleted your core of magic, isn't it? If the Keeper of Space was accurate in assessing its origin as magical, that would mean it takes magic to maintain. A barrier of that size would take an extraordinary amount as upkeep, well beyond human limitations even for an experienced avatar. For you to be this weak, it must have existed for millennia now."_

_A smile formed on Terra's lips, slightly amused. "You are correct. The barrier is not of my making and in fact has puzzled me over the years ever since its creation. However, I cannot deny that it has saved me several times, even though it is killing me."_

"_Explain."_

"_It was during the fall of the Moon Kingdom. Despite your assumptions, not every demon assaulted you nor did every Demon Master. Your sacrifice to destroy them all was, admittedly, in vain. However, the peculiarities begin there. The master that appeared on me, he was at the forefront of the armies, and he arrived alone. The bastard of a demon violated me of course, but he used my magic – as well as much from the cosmos – to construct this barrier just before the armies reached me._

"_I assumed that he meant to be the sole reaper of sorrow and destruction on me, but he only left soon after, leaving my children alive. The same master has reappeared several times since then, though he has yet to violate my core a second time and his interactions with my children are remarkably limited, whether he slays them or helps them. Peculiar indeed."_

_Nemesis frowned. "An odd appearance, yet the nature of a Demon Master cannot be denied anymore than a human's. His motives are ulterior to what he has presented. Regardless of him, however, this barrier on you needs to be removed, Terra. Have you any ideas in how my Avatar and I can manage it?"_

"_A rather straightforward master, actually. I believe his preservation of the human race is to continue feeding on their sufferings and sorrows, and his barrier makes my body a private playground for him, unable to be touched by other masters. In a sense, I have been claimed his property, disgusting though the concept may be. As for removing that collar he has placed on me, you are on your own. I have not the strength for it, and neither does the remains of your body," Terra answered simply._

_Ranma made a sound, bringing himself into the conversation. "I guess that makes this guy guaranteed separate from Big Bad, since he wouldn't need others to open those portals to reach here. While I wouldn't touch an alliance with this guy with a forty foot stick, maybe we could turn them against each other, getting them to quarrel over possession of Earth – err, no offense, Terra – and then take down the winner while he's weak."_

"_None taken, young avatar of Nemesis. However, Lord Loss has proven quiet intelligent in matters of manipulation. Attempting to do so would only incite his ire, and many a mortals have been laid low for such before. Believe me when I say those killed for it are the lucky ones."_

"_What... did you just say his name was?" Ranma asked quietly._

_Nemesis seemed startled, turning towards Ranma, while Terra smiled sadly. "Lord Loss, the sentinel of sorrow himself. The only reason your Bec MacConn managed to close that Tunnel was because of Lord Loss's interference, while his presence made her quest all the more miserable for it. He has been a plague on humanity for the last 3,000 years."_

"_That shouldn't be possible," Ranma muttered, his hand coming up to the tattoo residing over his left shoulder, an ancient rage not his own coloring his thoughts. "Madam Marietta's spell should have left him banished for millennia to come."_

_Nemesis's hand came to his arm comfortingly. "Look deeper at the issue, Ranma. When imprisoned, you found that Sir Anquish was the strongest Demon Master under Metaria's control. You know that she had several others. It is not improbable that she, for whatever foul reason, released Lord Loss from his banishment. More importantly, we killed Sir Anquish and two others with the _Eris Ascension,_ while Lord Loss went to Earth. Perhaps our Big Bad is an additional Demon Master formerly under her control, hence why he appears to already know you."_

"_I still don't see the need for finding out his identity, unless it helps us turn him and Lord Loss against each other," Ranma remarked, mind still focused on the fact that Lord Loss was already free._

"_It very well might help that, if they parted disagreeably with the fall of Metaria. However, the real importance I see is that with his identity, we will be able to better track down Big Bad's lair – a task already inherently difficult," Nemesis reasoned._

_Terra cleared her throat. "I have answered your summon, Nemesis, and I have answered your questions, if befuddling your grasp of what is threatening Tokyo's Juuban presently. Before I leave, I have one final question for you, Ranma. How is it you went from one of my sons to a hybrid of mine and Nemesis?"_

_It took Ranma a moment to focus back on her. "The scroll Happosai used on me, it sent me into the past where I replaced a baby of a woman in childbirth. My second mother was Nemesisian."_

_Terra nodded, rising to a stand and brushing off her dress. "Interesting, however, is how your features remained much the same as those I gave you, while still born of Nemesis."_

_Nemesis gave the standing Terra a look. "I still have words for you, Terra. Wars, hundreds of divided governments, no true central power, poverty, famines, rampart disease... You need to take an avatar, someone to unite your many disparate peoples and has the absolute authority to end injustices."_

_Terra's steely gaze met Nemesis's hard black eyes for a moment, then turned back to her dusting. "I will take an avatar when I find the right person for the duty."_

_Nemesis's jaw set. "Terra, I know things about this threat that you do not. This is not the time for a divided planet. Have you _perceived_ the magnitude of what will happen should we fail in stopping Ranma's dubbed 'Big Bad?'"_

"_I have watched, for thousands of years, as mages have opened those windows into the Demonata Universe and invited destruction for my children. Always, there have been those that band together and stop it. Seeing the same threat on a different face a thousand time dulls my fear, Nemesis. I will consider taking an avatar, but I will not bind myself to someone so haphazardly." The woman turned her lead grey eyes to Ranma for a moment, betraying none of her thoughts, then she turned away from both of them and began to walk away._

_Nemesis and Ranma watched her for several steps, seeing her slow to a stop again. Terra flipping her red-brown hair over her shoulder to glance back at Nemesis. "When did you last rain, Nemesis?"_

_Nemesis's stare faltered momentarily. "The... The day I last had my body."_

_Terra shook her head. "We are not human, as you well know, but we have designed ourselves off of such. Just because you have no mountains does not mean you cannot erode within. You call my fault and so I call yours. Rain, Nemesis."_

_There was a breath of wind, and with it Terra vanished. Her side of scenery dispersed abruptly, leaving behind a foggy grey expanse of unfilled dream-reality. It took only a beat for that grey to be replaced by a continuation of Nemesis, erasing any reminder that everything around them was only a construction. It truly did feel like Ranma was back on Nemesis, as real as the illusions she produced in the waking world._

_With Terra's parting, Ranma turned to see Nemesis looking uncertain. He had no idea what the woman meant with that last comment, about her raining, but he could tell it held a significance to her. "Hey, you alright?"_

"_I'm fine, dearest Avatar, merely considering," she said. Nemesis seemed to snap out of it then, turning an amused smile to him. "It appears that your very long day just got longer."_

_Ranma, still aching and sore from the earlier spar with her, nodded. "She helped clear some things up though. We have the Lord Loss angle we can work at now, who I still can't believe has been free all this time, and we know how to prevent Terra from dying, if not the exact method yet."_

"_Indeed." Her eyes averted from his then, staring out into the woods surrounding them. "Ranma, about Setsuna... I'm sorry I got in the way. Also, I will actually begin construction of a new body this night."_

_Ranma sighed, thinking back to Setsuna's rather sudden admission. "It ain't your fault. I told you already: I'm with you, and that was my choice."_

_It was a strange contrast to his days in Nerima, when several woman were after him yet he only wanted one, and now he was with one and yet he wanted... _Did_ he want more than one? He compared his current relationship with Nemesis to the others, considering if he wanted the same with any of them._

_He banished the thought before he got an answer. He was letting himself get too carried away with that poisoning promise of Crystal's law of polygamy, which wasn't even in effect anymore. Of those he cared about and could see himself actually tying the knot with, given different circumstances, Hotaru was much too young and without memories, there was no chance Crystal could form those kind of feelings for him given his unintentional hand in her husband's death, and now Setsuna, he would have been willing yet he was instead with Nemesis._

_Yuka also made the list as a girl he cared about deeply, yet he couldn't ever see himself with her romantically not just because of her catlike features, but because she had become a more genuine sister to him than anything else. Exposure to her had quelled the most of his fear of cats, but it was still there. Even a simple kiss on the cheek from her, without the glamor, roused more negative emotion than positive. He just couldn't share that kind of life with her._

"_Well, I believe we'll end your own training here for now and let you get at least some real sleep tonight," Nemesis said, breaking him from his thoughts. As he turned back to her, he saw her grow one of the mischievous smiles he never trusted. "Of course, a day like _this_ just wouldn't be complete without one more... bump. I foresee pleasurable dreams in your near future, dearest Avatar."_

"_No!" Ranma shouted, jumping to his feet as the world already began to fade away. "Nemesis, not right now! Bad time!" With his thoughts on those girls like this, he just _knew_ what kind of 'dream' he'd have if Nemesis forced his mind to..._

_His lucid thoughts began slipping away, fading along with his concerns. Nemesis laughed wickedly as she vanished. A last desperate bubble of thoughts passed Ranma's mind, _I just hope... I don't end up dreaming of all of them... together...

_He did not get his wish._

XxX

_Thankfully, the following days gave me a bit of a break, at least. Most likely a calm before the next storm with how things tend to go. The Senshi's training went steadily, still no fatal accidents, and the occasional attempted crossing was put down lethally. No news on the mystery mage still, though the Hunters have been on the lookout for him continually while I trained the Senshi._

XxX

"I see," Crystal murmured sympathetically, but she really didn't see. Setsuna had actually admitted her feelings for Ranma and they _hadn't_ gotten together? The attraction between them had seemed so painfully obvious from an outside observer.

"Well, I really couldn't," Ranma continued. "I'm with Nemesis right now, so it just wasn't possible."

Everything clicked into place for Crystal, and she nodded automatically. An image of Nemesis formed in her mind: the sentience of an entire planet, dark green hair and contrasting light green dress, her beauty less "girl next door" and more a wholesome femininity, and a mature personality befitting her position like Crystal herself, yet unlike herself, Nemesis could indulge behaviors her duty might otherwise suggest not.

She could honestly admit to not having expected Ranma and Nemesis getting together, but in retrospect she felt she should have. The closeness between them had been deep, and it was noticeable even despite the very few times she saw them together.

So Setsuna had been cowed by that relationship, allowing her feelings to smother, unrequited, instead of... expanding her horizons, so to speak. Crystal knew her Time Keeper had a rather narrow view of love, not entirely open to new possibilities, and she was willing to suffer for it. This explained why the woman seemed so distant at the last few practices.

Crystal's hand went to Ranma's arm, a simple touch on the wrist, leaving the last of her ice cream for the moment. "You have feelings for her anyways, don't you?"

Ranma grimaced, but he didn't deny it. Crystal had assumed as much. "Doesn't really matter if I do or don't, though. I'm not leaving Nemesis."

Had this been a issue presented before her throne rather than from a friend she regarded as an equal, Crystal would have simply solved the matter by requiring a marriage between all three parties. She was fairly certain she had made such rulings before.

Of course, in her younger days, the idea of sharing Ryu's attention and affections would have invoked furious jealousy, not dissimilar to what she assumed these modern women would. However, she had been married to the man for over a century. Even with the forbidden excitement of their relationship, his overwhelming passion, and the limited contact between them, the fires began to dull with time. Over a _century_ with the same man. Introducing another lover into the equation would have spiced things up nicely.

Crystal felt that Setsuna, a woman even older than herself and undoubtedly facing crushing loneliness for most of her days, would have seen the same benefits of multiple lovers. Narrow-minded, she reminded herself.

The last bite of her ice cream was on her spoon, Crystal realized, and she made sure she savored and relished it entirely as she went through the last of her musings.

Ranma himself was more awkward in matters of the heart than any other she had met. A bad history likely. A remarkable man, but he had his faults. Simply put, he could not be allowed to be the decider in things. Crystal was more than sure that Nemesis finally acquiring courtship was not a matter of choice for the man. If Crystal decided to dirty her hands in this emotional tangle, Ranma couldn't be the instigator.

"Always keep your mind open to other possibilities," Crystal said finally, only a touch forlorn that her sweets were already finished. Ranma didn't get the implication immediately, as she suspected, but the thought would be there to puzzle out later. She changed subjects, "Ranma, if I may inquire... If we had never faced threat of the war from Queen Metaria, or threat from whomever it is now, what do you think you would be doing? We have always been preparing for one thing or another, and the curiosity stuck me that I have never seen you without the burden of duty."

"You mean like besides all the Senshi training and fighting and stuff, right?" Ranma asked, to which Crystal nodded. He turned thoughtful for only a few moments before giving a shrug. "I dunno. Thought about it after I heard Metaria was dead. Best answer I got was try and live normally, while facing all the trouble that'd cause when – not _if_ – it cropped up."

Crystal laughed lightly, and amusement colored her words: "True that you do not seem cut out for the normal life. I-"

"Lord Ranma!" a voice shouted, and they both turned to see Kresh moving towards them, bringing the attention of those in the parlor. The unusual demon stopped at their table, worry recognizable on his human disguise. "Crossings."

Ranma stood from his seat immediately, casting out his senses for magic out through the city. What he felt disturbed him. He turned towards Crystal with the hardness reserved for battle. "Crossings, plural. Not one but three a- _four_ are starting."

He reached down and swung the giant black back containing Nemesis over his shoulder, absently offering a hand to help Crystal rise as he continued speaking, "I need you to call together everyone, including Bec, and get them to meet at the mall. That will be the last we try to stop, and I want us ready if they actually break through before I get there."

After helping Crystal stand, Ranma whipped towards Kresh and began opening his bag. "Take my scythe. You can stop the one at the school while I stop the other two."

His fingers enclosed around the wood of the scythe, feeling the warm grooves of the silvery veins, and Nemesis's voice filled his head urgently, _"Ranma, please, don't give me to the demon!"_ He paused, blinking. _"Please, Avatar, if you have any compassion, don't allow contact between myself and Kresh."_ Nemesis was _begging_ him. She never did that.

Of course, planetary beings had some bad blood with demons. Touching their core was akin to rape, and demons did so even unintentionally. Overwhelmed with demons, dark and disgusting presences sweeping into her to steal her magic, the last time Nemesis had begged was for him to use the Eris Ascension to kill them all at the cost of her life.

Cursing the time it would cost him, Ranma nodded once. "I won't." He let go and zipped the bag back up. His eyes found Crystal again, dead serious. "Crystal, get everyone to the park instead of the mall. There's five now."

XxX

Makoto, currently Sailor Jupiter, was excited. They finally had a fight on their hands, where she could test her new abilities. Ranma-sensei (he insisted that they call him that) had demanded they not practice magic without his supervision, and she obeyed his rule. Mostly. Just little things at her house, nothing dangerous. Maybe a little fire had caught, but she put it out in time.

Now, though, she got to use them against a truly evil foe, and she had permission to not hold back.

She met with the other Inners at Rei's shrine, and the group of them continued their run all the way over to Juuban's most well-known park. It was where they had first encountered Ranma fighting that gnome that turned into a giant. The Outers joined them on the way, minus Haruka who was apparently still gone. They were all transformed already.

Queen Serenity herself was leading the charge, silver hair flying behind her as her long legs ate ground at an impressive pace. The Queen certainly handled things differently than Usagi had. Less complaining, more serious, and generally a better leader. Makoto would have done much to have her old friend back anyways.

Finally Ranma-sensei himself, who she _swore_ bore a resemblance to her old _senpai _(not missing the irony)_,_ appeared with his demons. All of them, she found. The two-tailed catgirl, the stocky one named Kresh, and both Hunters. He was currently transformed, white bodysuit and black plates, and the ease of his movements had her check his hand to see the simple black band was gone.

That brought her mind to Hotaru, and she saw Sailor Saturn running apace with them despite the double-gravity ring she wore. Makoto smiled at the girl, nodding her head once in acknowledgment. Still, the girl was obviously the most tired of all of them, already panting.

Ranma-sensei leaned towards Queen Serenity and said, "Someone else stopped two of them while I handled the others. I would have gotten the last on my own, but you guys were on the way and..."

"It's too late," Kresh finished grimly, stout limbs moving awkwardly in his run.

Queen Serenity nodded as she ran. "The others are on the way as well, intending to meet us there."

"What do you think they are taking about?" Mars asked Makoto.

"Seems like there was more than one bad guy," Makoto reasoned, and Mars nodded as if thinking the same. Oh, she hadn't forgotten the priestess's _wings_ either, even if they weren't out currently. She, like the others, had been completely surprised when Rei had come swooping in – admittedly ungracefully – with her new wings. It wasn't even anything like Sailor Moon's, supposedly.

They reached the edges of the park. It was a moonless night, leaving only the orange glow of the manufactured lights. It bathed the grass and plants in an unearthly color, elongating shadows into deep black voids where blocked from the few poles. No person was out for a late stroll, thankfully. Other than that, the park looked much the same.

Of course, there _was_ the sea-green patch of light hovering over near the fountain. And there _were_ the many dark, twisted shapes of varying size spread all around that light, and there _were_ more dark shapes emerging from the portal every second. Not to mention the _slight_ overabundance of fangs, claws, spines, bones, slime, and the like from the many shapes, all of them with the motions of living creatures.

As soon as the first demon cause sight of them, there was a loud and challenging roar. Makoto's heart lurched into a sudden frenzy, adrenaline deciding right there that flight was not an option and fight most certainly was. There had to be _hundreds_ of demons here, already. The snarling monsters began clamoring their way towards their group.

Abruptly, Ranma-sensei dashed off to the side, his demons following. Queen Serenity ignored him, lifting her Ginzuisho as they came increasingly closer, and shouted, "No mercy! For the Moon!"

Heh, certainly a change from the Princess.

Makoto held her breath for a hanging second, time appearing to slow as her vision unfocused, all of her attention going into the sense that pointed out her planet deep in the reaches of space. She reached towards it with what felt like an invisible hand, finding the endless well of power stored away, and she brought handfuls of it back to herself, bringing it inside and filling herself with a tingling power that seemed to quiver bliss inside.

All that happened between one step and the next. The sudden intake of breath at the wondrous feeling of _magic_ inside her was echoed by several of the other Sailor Scouts, and she knew they had done the same as her. There was only a dozen or so yards until contact with the demons. Makoto began gathering her intent, focusing her mind in strict detail exactly what she wanted her magic to do.

Before she could unleash the spell, the new Sailor Moon struck first. A _vortex_ of what Makoto recognized as raw magic suddenly exploded out of the Ginzuisho, a twisting storm of more magic than she had ever seen in one place. It didn't just slam into the demons in the front, like Makoto expected from raw magic, but the very nature of the attack tore them to pieces. It ground grass, earth, sidewalk, and demon alike in its path – wide though it was – and continued onward until dozens of demons were nothing more than gory and rather pungent bits.

Makoto tried not to retch as she stared in awe at the power her Queen had just wielded, covering her nose with a hand. Those around her had slowed their runs too, all staring at the destruction. However, there were still demons, and Queen Serenity's attack had barely scratch the surface of their numbers. Still more shapes dropped from the portal at the fountain.

Excitement still raged within her, though diminished knowing she could never do what Sailor Moon had just done, yet even that excitement couldn't quell the sudden fear at the numbers they were facing. It was like an invasion or something!

Just then, Ranma-sensei slammed into the demonic horde's flank on the left side. Like the Queen, he opened with magic, and suddenly there was light equivalent to day as fire erupted among the demons. Eruptions of earth and lightning came simultaneously from the right, and she could vaguely make out the shapes of the "good guy" demons.

Makoto felt herself grin. Over the roaring sounds of attacks and demons, she shouted, "Let's kick some ass!"

She directed the magic again, concentrating, and she jabbed her hand forward, fingers out. Forks of blue lightning shot from each of her fingers, an idea from a movie she saw combined with her own Senshi affinity, and the still approaching demons gave howls as they were hit. The lightning was weaker than her actual Senshi attack, Makoto knew, but there was a satisfaction in it.

She could do magic.

The others followed her lead. They weren't terrible diverse, all things considered. Fire consumed the demons, mostly. Torrents of flame, fireballs, Mercury managed a concentrated beam of heat... The only reason Makoto had been allowed lightning was because she had gotten Ranma's approval and supervision as she worked with it. However, that wasn't to say the others had learned nothing after the first day.

They had mostly gone over the basic elements. They had learned that creating water on the fly was much more difficult than fire. However, thanks to her own Senshi attack, such wasn't an issue for Mercury. After her first attack, the blue haired girl continued with the dirty work by shouting, _"MERCURY AQUA RHAPSODY!"_

A huge amount of water appeared with it, but instead of slamming into any enemies, it just remained hovering there. There was a brief moment as she concentrated, and suddenly the water shifted and split, then froze. Just like that, there were hundreds of frozen spears awaiting command, and command she did, impaling rows of demons.

There were similar workings from others, variations of things with the relatively limited amount of training Ranma-sensei had given, though many still remained comfortable with sending blasts of fire. Makoto herself forced a steady discharge of lightning into one arachnid-like demon, watching its hide cook until it flopped to the ground, legs curling up above it.

She stretched her meager limits, still wanting to try out magic before resorting to her less exhausting Senshi attacks. Simple and, err, hollow vines grew from the ground and bound from demons, but the weak bindings proved useless on all but one tiny thing that began gnawing frantically on its snare until it was free. More magic from Jupiter, and fire leapt from her hands, roasting another couple of demons. A gust of wind toppled one demon into another, sending them in a heap before Pluto used a blade of air to cut them in half.

Makoto shot a look at the green haired Senshi, slightly jealous.

However, turning her attention away from the butchery gave her another scope of the battle. For all their work, the demon forces were hardly phased by the losses. More were coming free of the portal, nearly as fast as they were killing them. Fortunately, while that was true for those the Scouts killed, both Ranma-sensei and the Urgoks had pinched the sides of the demons, nearly splitting them in half. For the first time, she got a real look at how good her _sensei_ really was.

The man was physical mixed with magical, literally in the midst of the demons and cleaving them apart faster than the eye could track, while at the same time spells would tear apart those he missed. Spikes from the earth, blasts of fire hotter than Makoto knew she could produce, a blast of what had appeared water until the demons it splashed onto froze solid, a clap of thunder that made hers look like sparks burned a literal hole through a demon and into the one behind.

How he could focus enough for spells while constantly in motion was beyond Jupiter. Lots of experience, she supposed.

And then Queen Serenity herself, Makoto hadn't noticed her doing anymore attacks, so why... Her eyes widened, and suddenly she was thankful to have the Queen there on her side, on the front line, and experienced with magic as she was.

The demons hadn't been standing idle while they slaughtered them. They tried swarming around the Scouts, rushing in faster than the one they had fought days ago, jumping above – Queen Serenity was there, blasting them back fiercely, fatally for most. Not only that, but as Ranma-sensei had warned once, the demons weren't limited to melee. Some spat globs of what was surely acid, others snapping projectiles of bone or fang, one even belched a gas that ignited in its approach. Still the Queen was there, turning acid back to the demons, deflecting projectiles into other demons, quelling the flames.

The woman was their defense, and a terribly good one at that.

But this wasn't the limit to their fighting force, either. Makoto felt elated as they made steady work of their opponents, a nearly invincible wall of magic and she supposed scythe blocking the demons from escaping into their city. For once they didn't face an enemy with the upper hand, fight against uneven odds, or even burden themselves with the worry over the life of an innocent.

More than that, they had _allies_ this time. Ranma-sensei was one, his demons more. And then the newest ones came.

Their was a challenging shout, and suddenly the redheaded foreigner was darting on bare feet along the grass to their left, a pair of stone knives in either hand, and she barreled into the demons unexpectedly. If Makoto had any doubt of the girl's ability without a planet of power backing her, those vanished when she saw the sickening explosions of limbs and bodies from the Priestess's spells, attacks less flashy and more deadly.

The girl wasn't alone as two beings, winged like Mars, came down and deposited a third carrying a simple metal staff, and the three of them made their way into the demons, supporting Bec. Makoto almost worried for the little kid until she saw the fire and ice that he wielded with his two staffs.

Who in the world _were_ these people?

Feeling the 'sickness,' as they were beginning to call it, Makoto calmed down her blasts of magic, switching over to her Senshi spells. She wasn't the first to feel the effects, as seen by others using their own Senshi abilities, though others still showed no signs of it yet.

Ranma-sensei's earlier tips on getting her Senshi spells out faster made a lot more sense now that she had started learning "real" magic, also what they were calling it. It was having the visual of the spell before even saying the words, simply releasing the energies as soon as they were spoken, not dragging the word out as the attack 'built up.' It was so similar to "real" magic, yet different as the spells followed a specific guideline.

A guideline that she could use to make it faster. _"JUPITER OAK EVOLUTION!"_ She shouted it faster than ever before, and the attack came faster than ever before.

It was depressing how much more effective the attack was than her earlier blasts of magic, both lighting and fire, but that had been so much more fun. Actually making contact with the demons with her spells now vaporized them nicely.

She hadn't noticed because of the many corpses piling everywhere, but the enemy's numbers had thinned out drastically. Queen Serenity was even able to go back on the offensive, blowing apart the straggler demons that quickly found out their companions they thought were surrounding them were nothing more than dead bodies.

They began advancing forward, into the groves of carcasses, and teamed up with Bec and the others. Together they approached the portal, only occasionally ending a demon when necessary. Ranma and Kresh had moved side-to-side, supported by the two Hunters and the _Nekomata_, and the five of them had contained the last of the demons to a small circle pressed against the portal, preventing more from coming through.

Just then, Makoto heard an odd shout. _"Fubuki Sousou!"_ Blizzard funeral? What could that possibly-

The last pocket of demons vanished. Literally. In a small cloud of mist and an icy shock wave. There was a small creator beneath the portal now, and nothing else tried coming through, suggesting the blast had carried partway through it as well.

A dark form descended from the sky suddenly (_Stop with the fliers already,_ Makoto deadpanned), scooping up another shape from behind the portal she hadn't seen. There was a wet rip, a brief snap, and then that second shape fell down in two pieces. The portal immediately shrank in size before vanishing.

Ranma-sensei faced the newcomer warily as he landed on the ground, marching towards them. Makoto felt herself being influenced by his unease, eyeing whomever it was. An older man with tanned, leathery skin. Obviously a foreigner. His hair was dirty and with a great bushy beard, all of its mostly grey, and his clothing was dark with a tan trench coat over it. The man was wiping his hands of something that appeared black, but his beady eyes were fixed only on one person in their entire group.

"Bec," the man rumbled, voice deep and without a Japanese accent. The words following weren't Japanese either, all with the same accent.

The red haired girl, now covered in blood, blinked up at him. She took a step back at his approach, jaw slowly dropping. Ranma watched her and the man both. Finally, Bec shook her head and shouted something, now _her_ words not Japanese. Actually, they sounded similar to the man's.

Abruptly, dark-and-scary dropped to a knee before the girl, opening his arms wide. His smile was watery, and it occurred to her that he didn't often express such a positive emotion. He muttered quietly, "Bec..."

The Priestess leaped from the ground towards him, tackling the man in a sudden hug. He caught her and stood, spinning with her in his arms. They were both laughing now, even as a second man – this one, thankfully, Japanese – approached from the darkness towards them.

The next man was remarkably simpler, black hair and black eyes, an average, youthful Japanese male, his simple business suit suggesting he recently entered the workforce. He appeared maybe twenty years old, and his soft smile made him look attractive enough that Makoto confirmed that: yes, she would date him.

"So it is her, Beranabus-sama," the man said, eyeing the laughing couple. Ranma-sensei watched him too, stance rather predatory though Makoto felt only she might recognize it. It was subtle, even for those who practiced martial arts.

Finally, the man released Bec, and the blood-soaked girl staggered a few steps before turning a bright smile towards Ranma-sensei. "Ranma, meet Bran, whom I told you about from my quest. He _survived!"_

The man smiled, suddenly looking sheepish as if something about the statement was something to be embarrassed about. Then, he wiped the expression and turned calm, power and command seeping into his stance and bearing similar to the Queen and Ranma himself. "My name is Beranabus," he said in perfect Japanese, "leader of the Disciples. I am a Magician."

XxX

Setsuna had heard rumors of Magicians before, not the stagecraft kind but those of real, literal talent. Humans that were beings of magic, like Demonata, rather than flesh, with an innate skill that was always said to be unheard of. However, word of Magicians – even during the Moon Kingdom – always came from a friend who heard it from a friend that someone had witnessed one. No one she had met ever actually met one.

And yet this Beranabus claimed the title. She wished briefly that she had access to the Time Gates so that she could inspect his past, perhaps see if she could confirm any rumors about Magicians if he actually was one.

Threat resolved for the time being, the Scouts had been sent back home. Only she, Ranma, and Queen Serenity remained with Bec and the Urgoks, all of them following Beranabus and his Disciple named Yuudai back to a hotel room. The Disciples, Setsuna had actually heard of: magically talented individuals that had banded together for one purpose or another. She had witnessed a couple over the centuries.

"So you're Bran," Ranma started once they all got settled in the hotel room, untransformed and undisguised. He held less importance on secret identities. "The little boy who danced with demons and ran fast and helped close the Tunnel with Bec. Fifteen hundred years ago."

That attracted Setsuna's attention, regarding the man in a new light. He was old, literally and physically. He obviously hadn't taken Mercury's drug that reversed age, trapping people eternally in their prime until an unnatural death – pathogens, murder, et cetera. Perhaps something of his nature as a Magician gave him a longer life.

Beranabus gave a nod. "The same. Drust, whom Bec also saved when closing the Tunnel, taught me magic, back then much stronger than now, and after his death I searched for others with magical ability. Knowing the threat of the Demonata, I founded the Disciples to fight back. I have my members scattered around the world, each knowing how to identify when rogue mages begin attempting to open windows into the Demonata universe, and each knows what is needed to stop them."

He gestured towards the Japanese man. "Yuudai here is the last living Disciple stationed in Japan, and needless his stories of... the Sailor Scouts have been distracting, let alone the other oddities found throughout this country, especially Nerima. He contacted me when there was an eruption of magic in this single distract, crossings every other day and individuals throwing magic around despite it having drained from the air and earth years ago."

"So, are you here to help?" Ranma asked, cutting to the point.

The man shrugged a shoulder. "I don't bother myself with the human universe. Demons always get into the heads of the weak-willed, always try and cross over, and I have the Disciples to contain them. The real threats I have found lie in the Demonata universe. I will only be here a short time before crossing to continue my real work, stopping the genocides before they begin."

"Well said," Queen Serenity commented, demeanor that of a ruler. "For a moment, one could almost think you didn't entirely dance around the question."

Beranabus's dark eyes slid to her, studying for a moment. Then, he shrugged again. "Originally, I came here assuming that the outbreak of magical occurrences could give me a new batch of recruits. That is my true purpose. This city – this _district_ – has the greatest concentration of those with magical talent I have ever seen. If I can reach them before the Demonata do, it would be a great advantage.

"Of course, that was before I just witnessed _five_ attempted crossings within three miles of each other, and the one that managed poured hundreds of Demonata through. That cannot be coincidence. Something is mobilizing against humanity, as seen by how readily they crossed over. This is the kind of threat that crops up around once every couple centuries, one that can actually eradicate humanity. I intend to stop it in their universe, like the others."

Ranma smiled at him, nothing nice in the expression. "Let's get one thing straight first. You try and recruit even one of my girls, I'm going to shove my foot up your ass so far you won't bother sitting down in this universe for years."

Ah, Ranma. Always the diplomat.

The one named Yuudai seemed stunned and outraged by the disrespect, while Ranma continued, "Now that that's clear, let's talk about stopping this threat. Magician or not, you can't just storm into Mordor, fight off the armies until you reach Mount Doom, and then just push Big Bad into the lava. Might make a good movie, but a Demon Master would tear you to pieces first."

"Tear me to pieces?" Beranabus asked, his sudden grin wolfish. "Many have tried, to limited success. You simply have to know how to fight them properly."

Ranma raised an eyebrow, considering that. Setsuna had a sudden reminder of her confession to him and his rejection, and she turned from Ranma to Beranabus as he began speaking again, "Just like how a single Demonata crossing into this world can cause mass death to humans, one magically gifted individual going into theirs can do the same to them. The magic there is heavier, more responsive. The things you can do infinitely more spectacular. Occasionally, a lucky man can go toe-to-toe with a weaker Demon Master on almost equal footing."

"If normal magic users can do that..." Ranma muttered, and Setsuna felt the suggestion. As Senshi, they should be able to do so much more. "Look, Bran, we've reasoned out the worst of this threat already before you came, but how do you think they could accomplish destroying us?"

"Using lodestones would be easiest," Beranabus replied, "as Bec can attest to with the Tunnel. They can allow greater numbers to arrive faster, and the Tunnel will widen over time until it allows the passage of Demon Masters, remaining open until the power from the lodestone drains, which could take years.

"Other than that, which is the most common threat I've faced over the centuries, there are obscure rituals powerful enough to get a master over, or enough mass sacrifice might accomplish it. Like how those too weak to open a window sacrifice themselves for it, while others – like today's – remain alive to keep it open, except on a scale of hundreds to thousands."

Ranma nodded, then ran a hand through his hair before turning to Queen Serenity. "Any more questions?" She shook her head, and Ranma repeated the question for Setsuna. She also shook her head, though Ranma's gaze lingered on her for a moment longer before turning back to the Magician.

Beranabus grunted. "I got some for you, now. The first problems reported from Juuban came two years ago, along with reports of the Sailor Scouts fighting it, saving me the trouble of wasting resources. However, never were there any mentions of you, yet you come right before all these new problems come up." He tilted his head towards the demons. "Not to mention I just witnessed Demonata working together with humans to kill other Demonata. It's like you're their master or something."

"None of those are actually questions," Ranma observed, a slight mock in his response.

Beranabus wasn't goaded. Blunt as a rock, he asked, "Who are you? Where did you come from? How are you related to this threat? Are those demons subjugated to you?"

Setsuna smiled at that, turning an eye back to Ranma. The man, Beranabus, obviously put up with very little nonsense. Ranma seemed unphased, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. "My name is Uzuki-Saotome, Ranma. Where I come from... well, that's complicated and irrelevant. How am _I_ related to this threat? I don't really know yet, but we're pretty sure there's something to do with me. It's how things tend to work. The Urgoks are mine, yes, but Yuka here is human. Human enough, anyways."

The Magician glanced towards Yuka, studying the pale skinned glamor. He snorted after a moment. "Human?"

"Consider it a curse," Ranma said, giving a shrug.

Something about that struck a chord in Beranabus and Bec both, Setsuna saw. Both stared at Yuka for a few moments longer before softening their expressions and turning back to the conversation. Beranabus's penetrating gaze turned onto Ranma again. Ranma only stared back, unflinching and unconcerned.

Finally, the elder man's deep voice rumbled softly, "You are young, cocky, and a smartass. Even so, you're strong – stronger than any human I ever met before on this side. When I go back to the Demonata universe, I'd rather have you with me to help stop whatever is causing this. What say you? Stay here and continue grunt work in containing crossings, even though you are not needed, or come with me into their universe, working to stop them from within where you'll actually make a difference?"

Something about this meeting struck something with Setsuna. _Too soon!_ Crystal Tokyo's warning, the letter... It almost appeared that they were on the verge of ending the threat, especially with the Magician's confidence, however there was still much more of the letter to cover before they should reach this point. Queen Meioh had mentioned that she enacted Crystal Tokyo rather than committing to crossing over and seeking the threat in their universe, yet already the question of doing so was brought up.

This was much too soon!

She opened her mouth to intervene, but Queen Serenity beat her there, "No shame nor subtlety. You are very obviously trying to manipulate my Senshi into your service." She did not sound pleased about it, either. "If such a drastic choice is made as to actually assault their universe, it will be done together, working between ourselves, and not Ranma following you into the unknown. Furthermore, how _dare_ you accuse him of acting needlessly here? If he wasn't here, there would have been more than one portal open today, resulting in a slaughter. And although it is none of your business, Ranma is also the one teaching those other girls how to fight back. He needs to be here."

Silence.

Setsuna stared at her Queen in a mild surprise, seeing the cold anger in her eyes. Beranabus looked equally surprised, likely not stood up against very often.

No one said anything for a few moments, then Ranma shook his head and laughed. "Thanks, Crystal, but it wasn't necessary. I'm not going with him." His blue eyes slid back to Beranabus and hardened. "Everything she said is true though. If you can't solve this yourself and want my help, we will work together. And if we do end up going into their universe, I'm not leaving Juuban behind unprotected. I want to be confident of its security before I'm willing to leave."

Beranabus grunted, visibly displeased by the turn of things. "Idealistic children. What matters a dozen human lives to the millions – _billions_ – you could save by stopping the force at work here? You focus on the present, those few lives you save at the moment, but not the many you save in the end. You dare to weigh a dozen, a hundred, even a thousand lives against that of the planet, and then say that those few are the more important, because there are a few you could save now when later you won't have the power to save any as everyone dies because we failed."

Even Queen Serenity hesitated at that, Ranma only watching him without emotion. Setsuna shook her head, asserting herself in the conversation in defense of her Queen. "Is that what you say to help yourself sleep each night? Do you even consider the possibility that you might have saved those few lives _and_ stopped the threat, with only a little bit of effort to accomplish both? You who apparently remains immersed in the war against Demonata and knows only battle _dare_ presume to understand the responsibility of Queen Serenity?

"Her duty is to the people, making sacrifice of herself to protect the many over the few – as you stated – and you so thoughtlessly speak as if she doesn't already know. Watch your words hereon, Magician, for I will not tolerate more slander against my Queen."

Outwardly she was icy calm, nearly glaring in disdain, while on the inside Setsuna felt a warm satisfaction. It had been so long she had last spoken out for her Queen. It felt good doing so again.

Ranma gave her a praising look and grinned, and Setsuna felt just a little more warmth within. Beranabus, however, shook his head. His voice came with an underlying tone of anger, "I have tried before. Many times before. All but a precious few, everyone I saved only died when the threat overtook us momentarily – overtook us because I turned my attention from it _for_ those few. It is a risk I am no longer willing to take, especially not against a mobilized Demon Master."

He sighed, weathered face seeming to age several years as his anger and frustration bled out. "However, I am not here to debate morals and ethics. I am here to get the job done. I ask for your help. If you will not give it, I will continue about my work."

Ranma opened his mouth immediately, but Queen Serenity stopped him with a raised hand. She, like Setsuna, knew well of Ranma's foot-in-mouth tendency, and this was a matter that required a slight delicacy and diplomacy. Seeing Ranma settle back, Queen Serenity said, "I would implore you, sir Beranabus, to not consider this help now or help never. It is apparent we are on the same side here, and while our intended methods may be different, our goals are much the same.

"Though we may part ways now, there might come a time in the near future that you or we learn something new or the status of things change. We will help you within reason, and ask that you do the same for us. It would be well for both of us to know we have allies elsewhere: for you, in the central location of attack, and for us, in the Demonata universe."

Beranabus snorted at that. "Once I cross back over, you will never see me again. That I can assure you." Before entirely dismissing them, however, one hand came to his bushy beard and stroked it in thought. "But I would be a fool to dismiss a possibility out of hand. You may consider the Disciples and myself allies, Queen of Old. For now."

Queen Serenity thanked him, sealing the matter. They began to gather themselves to leave, tensions dropping again and reverting into conversational levels. Ranma confronted the Magician, asking, "You were flying with magic, right? I so gotta learn that."

At the same time, the Japanese Disciple, Yuudai, approached Bec, striking up a conversation. Setsuna had noticed how he had secretly been glancing at the Priestess throughout the meeting. The interest was obvious, and she was struck at how quick and even whimsical attraction could be. She compared it to what she felt for Ranma, if it had been so quick or a dragged out matter, and then shied away from the thoughts.

Finally, as they were leaving the room, Setsuna noticed that Bec wasn't leaving with them. The redhead was in a conversation with Beranabus, seeming to struggle with something. Setsuna knew people well enough to know what Bec's old friend was pressuring her into. Beranabus was driven towards his cause entirely, and he would manipulate even Bec into it. He wouldn't see it as such, seeing instead something much more noble, but in essence that's what it was.

They hadn't even left the hotel before Bec caught up to them, and she went to Ranma directly. The girl gave a weak smile. "When Bran crosses into their universe, I... I'm going with him. I have until then to help you out, and say my goodbyes to Aunty Nodoka."

There wasn't always a joy in being right.

XxX

Eleven loved people.

The joy they could display, the love, passion, rage, sorrow, revulsion, trust, fear, surprise... Such a wide range of emotions. No two people were the same either, like snowflakes, as amazing as it was among a planet of billions. Interaction with another person was a profound experience he couldn't quite express into words, the delightful art of socializing.

He very much treasured these moments when he could leave his very few companions and actually meet strangers, discover new hidden personalities, share a few moments of companionship, and occasionally experience the pleasure of a woman. He had a job to do out here, and he would do it, but he would enjoy himself while doing so.

BANG! BANG BANG! "This is the police! Please open the door or we will be forced to break it down!"

Eleven sighed, swirling his glass of scotch and hearing the ice clinking. This was in inconvenience, but to be completely honest he needed to get back to work anyways. This seemed a good time to start again.

"Yes, yes, I'm coming, sir!" he called back, then leaned against his padded leather seat and stretched. His glass clinked again in the motion, the sound drawing his attention as he relaxed again.

"Pet," he drawled, a slow, sensuous smirk making its way to his features as a girl came in from the kitchen. She was a pretty little thing, dressed in a nice little number he heard was called a french maid uniform or something similar. The girl had had it stored away even before he got to her. "My hat, if you will."

She was also the original owner of this house, going by the name Furiha Nagato. She was now one of the many that occupied it. Eleven's collection was spread throughout the building in various rooms, men and women standing at attention with eyes downcast, waiting for his next command.

Pet returned, carrying his black, wide-brimmed hat in both her hands. Eleven stood up and took the hat, thanking her and handing over his unfinished scotch. "I'll be right back," he muttered to her, putting the hat on and beginning to make his way over to the door before this era's peacekeepers continued trying to break in.

Eleven swung open the front door, then leaned against it as he studied those that disturbed him. Black boots, navy blue pants, light blue undershirt, and dark blue vests – along with a variety of badges, letterings, and words. There were three of them, the eldest male in the lead and two younger folk standing just behind him.

The lad on the left had the spark.

"Evening, gentlemen. How may I assist you this fine day?" Eleven asked, peering at them from under the brim of the hat.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you, sir," the leading man started, "but Ms. Nagato has been showing rather unusual behavior of late, and her neighbors have been growing worried. I understand the inconvenience, but we have been asked to confirm that there is nothing wrong. If we may please speak with Ms. Nagato for a bit, just a sentence or two to confirm she is well...?"

_Interesting..._ "Certainly," Eleven said, smirking. "By all means, come in."

The police entered the home, like unsuspecting sheep to the slaughter, glancing around at the lovely home and its flowery decorations. None of his collection was in eyesight from the entryway, not that Eleven felt it would matter.

He stepped over to the side after closing the door, now leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets, hat covering the most of his features now. "Pet! Some men would like to speak to you."

There was some shuffling from the police at that, startled, and then the measured steps of Pet could be heard entering the room. There was a few moments of silence, and then the elder man cleared his throat. Embarrassment was obvious in his voice, "Ms. Nagato, please excuse us, we just wanted to be certain all was well for you. I believe we understand why your neighbors were unsettled, so just a word and we will leave."

Pet's soft, enticing voice responded, "There is no need to worry, policeman, I am doing wonderfully now. Master is wonderful."

Eleven felt near laughing at the situation the poor peacekeepers found themselves in, but he felt it was time to stop delaying the matter. The magic he had been gathering for some time now was put to use, the words of a spell leaving his lips. He encompassed the three peacekeepers, one after the other, spinning magic around their minds until they were wrapped tight and nice.

A compulsion, a domination, a mind-control, an enslavement... There were many words and names for the spell, but the fact of the matter was that these men were his now, the newest additions to his collection. He lifted his head to see the vacant expressions that had overtaken them and smiled.

He pointed at the young man that was now on the right, the one he could feel the tiny spark of magic within. "You there, head to the back room and await further command." He walked over to Pet and recollected his glass of scotch, considering what to do with the remaining peacekeepers. Unlike the rest of his collection, they didn't have the spark, making them all but useless to himself.

However, there was a certain advantage to having infiltrators in the department of peacekeepers, especially with how important they had become in this era. He addressed the eldest, "What is your name?"

"Mido, Master. Yamada, Mido," the man answered, his tone distant.

"Mido..." Eleven repeated, committing the name to memory. Mido couldn't just be another nameless servant if he was to be used properly. "Mido, I want you both to go back to your establishment and act as your original selves. Nothing should appear amiss, nor should you acknowledge me to anyone else. You will think of an explanation for why the last is not returning ever. Continue your life normally until I come for you."

"Yes, Master," both men nodded, giving bows before turning and heading back out. The younger turned to Mido and spoke casually, about how pleasant the visit had been and how glad he was there weren't any problems. Mido grumbled agreement, both appearing exactly as they should.

Eleven grinned, finishing his glass of scotch and anticipating the further clash of ice against the glass. He handed the glass over to Pet and walked back over to his leather seat from earlier. He sank into the cushion, then slouched to the side and threw a leg over an arm, facing up towards the white ceiling.

The idea of infiltration in the peacekeepers gave him another idea. He could take the whole department, having the entire defense under his control. But what else defined power in this era? What else would give him advantage? Media influenced the masses, government imposed rule over them, the underground were a slippery power. He could take the emperor himself, even. So many possibilities!

XxX

Setsuna awoke to the near inaudible sound of footsteps on her rug. Someone was in her room and approaching her bed.

She didn't have to open her eyes to calculate the intruder's exact position, and a willing with her mind had her Garnet Rod appear in hand under her warm blanket. She waited a heartbeat for one last step, then she whipped her arm up in a flurry of cloth. Before whomever it was could realize what just happened, the end of her weapon was against his or her throat.

She had opened her eyes to the darkness of night, sleepiness banished in the moment. She saw whom the intruder was and sighed, lowering the Garnet Rod. "Ranma," she acknowledged.

The man brought a hand to his neck for a second, but instead of commenting on it, he said, "Crossings. The Hunters are out trying to deal with as much as they can, but they aren't fast enough for all of them. We need to move, now."

"Go then. I'll inform the others and catch up as soon as possible," Setsuna mentioned, mind falling back into calculations. More crossings... She noticed Ranma cough and turn to the side before nodding. Something was making him feel awkwar-

Setsuna only then recognized the coolness of the air against her chest. The sheets had fallen from her in her counter against the 'intruder.' "Goodness, Ranma, just _go_ already."

He grinned sheepishly and left. It was only a few seconds later she heard the front door open and close.

Setsuna shook her head, throwing off the blankets from the rest of her and rising. Honestly, couldn't he just have knocked? Though, he'd seen more than just her breasts before, so she wasn't terribly embarrassed by this. He had his own female body, too.

Transforming into her Senshi form dressed her, and she quickly roused the other occupants of the house before using her communicator to gather the others. It took only a minute for Saturn and Neptune to stumble down the stairs and leave the house with her, though Neptune's aquamarine hair was comically messed from her interrupted sleep.

Running in the chill of night, Setsuna took a moment to appraise Hotaru. The girl no longer struggled against the gravity from her ring, and her formerly slender limbs had gained some definition since. She hadn't reached an adequate strength yet, but she was getting there.

Her mind fell back to the threat. Ranma had informed her via communicator that two were going to open for sure. He told them to head for the street the Scout's favorite arcade was, sending the Hunters ahead of them, while he went elsewhere to close the other window alone. They had been caught off-guard by this late night attempt, losing the precious time they needed to close all the attempts.

It had been nearly a week since the last successful crossing, when they first met the Magician Beranabus. She and the other Senshi had gotten a fairly decent grasp over magic by this point, so she thought, but they still needed experience. They spent too much time and attention on producing spells, not enough variety either. Ranma's latest lesson had started moving into them getting their spells stronger, doing more damage – hotter fire, more powerful lightning, colder ice, denser vines.

Of course, Ami had had an accident two days ago when practicing. Even after they had been working for so long, a stray thought had come to her mid-spell, and it had been Ranma who almost died as a result. Apparently she was still bitter over being forced to drop from school and accidentally remembered that at the wrong time. She spent the rest of the day unconscious because of it.

Still, their side had become nearly unstoppable. She knew the dangers of that thought, but it was true. Ranma and Queen Serenity were in a league of their own, destruction and power respectively, with Kresh not far behind. Nothing this threat, Ranma's "Big Bad", had thrown at them had phased any of them. And then the Sailor Scouts and Hunters, they had already become more skilled and more powerful in leaps and bounds since Ranma resumed his lessons.

Whatever Crystal Tokyo was trying to warn them of, whatever horrors the letter was trying to guide her through, they had managed to bring the enemy to a stalemate. She didn't see that changing anytime soon, though she was prepared to face things if it did.

They arrived at the street at almost the same time the Inners did, seeing them round the corner about hundred yards down it. Between their two groups, hovering starkly bright against the white streetlights and dimly lit closed shops, was a deep crimson portal. Window, as Beranabus called them. Setsuna actually appreciated the color of this one, it being her favorite.

Both Hunters were there before them, and it appeared that there was only one opponent. That put Setsuna on guard as they approached, and she studied the fight closely.

The single demon was huge, easily eight feet tall. Its head was that of a wolf, fur white streaked with silver, though its teeth were at least three times too large, leaving its maw stretched unnaturally. It's eyes, too, were mismatched – the left, the golden of a regular wolf and the right, blood red with a slitted pupil of a reptile or cat.

Under that head was something else entirely. Skin a fleshy pink, it was like the hunched body of a hairless werewolf. The strong legs were eerily human, while the arms were thick as tree trunks. From the spot just below the elbows sprouted two long blades of white, most certainly bone, that extended a foot past its hands. They were thick at base but flattened and sharpened near the tips. Hairless claws were clenched tightly in fists, dripping dark blood down its palms. On its stomach, like a plate of armor, was an oval of black and green scales. It's back had a similar dome.

The Hunters bore spears and shields, harrying the giant together. The two demons, only around three feet tall each, were especially dwarfed next to the monster. However, Setsuna was surprised to see them powerfully resilient even so. Unlike Ranma, she couldn't tell the two apart, but one boldly leapt forward to block a wrist-blade, planted feet unmoving from the blow, while the other used the first's shoulders to jump high, arching over the demon and aiming a spear thrust into its eye.

There werewolf-demon snarled and moved its head in time, swatting the airborne Urgok away. It blocked and landed on its feet, sprinting on short legs to engage again.

Setsuna frowned at the seemingly straightforward fight, almost close enough to attack. That's when magic entered the fray.

The Demonata tilted its head and howled into the night sky. The sound was more than deafening, likely infused with magic like Usagi had managed to do with her hairpins. Setsuna flinched and covered her ears, as did the Urgoks, but the fight went on. Bright orange fire began swirling around one Urgok's spear like a flaming lance, and it thrust towards the werewolf.

It only smacked the spear with a blade, and at the contact the flames winked out and a layer of ice was left coating the weapon. The other Urgok tossed a ball of raw magic at the legs of the demon from behind, hamstringing it. Its head whipped towards that Urgok and it roared. The air itself distorted from the intensity, and the Urgok gave a soundless cry as the sonic blow launched it back in a small spray of blood.

The Senshi were close enough, and together they all pitched in. Setsuna herself held her hands apart and a massive ball of flames swirled into existence, bright oranges flickering and licking her hands. She forced her hands together, and the ball shrank with it, concentrating the heat and glowing brighter and brighter. Finally, only a small blade of brilliant white was left, mentally shaped to include a hilt and sharp edges. With a final burst of magic and intent, Setsuna sent the small dagger hurtling into the demon.

The dagger of fire was a new idea of hers she wanted to try out. Among the chaos of the others also attacking, Setsuna was barely able to watch the blade impact the demon's oval of scales on its chest, and then watch it deflect off and go skittering off into a nearby building. She winced as it went through the glass without shattering it, leaving an orange, melting hole, and then vanish off inside – likely punching through the other side too.

...Oops?

Others had similar success. Fire left no mark on it, Mercury's spears of ice only melted and the one that managed to hit its fleshy shoulder healed, lightning only went in one outstretched hand and came out the other, snares were useless, and Mars' idea of just a large blast of raw magic only barely staggered it.

And then Queen Serenity had her turn. She had stopped the reflected lightning from frying Neptune, then lifted the Ginzuisho vindictively. Setsuna could feel the power behind whatever spell it was before it was unleashed, a subtle throb through her whole body that nearly staggered her.

Lightning was the choice, everyone found out quickly. There was another deafening roar as a blinding _pillar_ of light exploded from the Ginzuisho and lanced into the werewolf mercilessly. Setsuna's hands came to her ears as the roar didn't let down, and her eyes remained shut as the spell continued in all its fury.

The air gained the scent of ozone. After what felt like an hour, but was likely only a matter of seconds, it stopped. Setsuna exhaled, trying to recompose herself. There was a ringing in her ears and a black bar across the center of her vision from the very brief glimpse she had had.

She focused back on the demon, but the black bar covered it. Frowning, Setsuna took a couple cautious steps back as she waited for her eyes to recover, assuming the Demonata was _certainly_ dead after that but not willing to take chances. A shape began to form, and she kept moving as she watched it.

The others seemed to be faring no better than her, not even Queen Serenity. The Queen likely hadn't anticipated the side-effects of that spell herself. Still, Setsuna wasn't jealous exactly, but she recognized that the power behind that spell alone was well beyond what she could do, ever. No one would be willing to throw down over the title of Queen anytime soon, and for good reason.

Her vision finally cleared enough, and Setsuna saw the demon. It was still alive, amazingly, but it was heavily wounded. The black of charred skin covered its entire form, a wispy smoke rising from where the fur used to be on its head, limbs twitching in heavy convulsions as it lie on its back, the oversized maw gnashed in silent howls. The shell of scales on its stomach had apparently been the entry point, now with a circle over a foot and a half wide of disgusting black open where scales had been previously.

The demon was attempting to stand again, but the twitches were too violent to allow it to. Setsuna prepared to finish it off, gathering more magic from Pluto. A blade of air strong enough to sever its head, she was thinking.

"DAGGER!" a female voice shrieked from behind them all, fury coloring the word.

Setsuna, and the others, turned to see who it was. A woman leapt from the roof of a building, landing the jump as easily as Ranma could. She had a dark grey T-shirt on and black motorcycle pants. Her black hair tumbled past her shoulders. Her back was to Setsuna, blocking her view of the woman's face, but she could see the sword the woman held, the curved blade of a flyssa, the metal black or painted.

The werewolf-demon's bi-colored eyes widened at the sight of her, and despite its injuries, it rose enough to began a lope back towards the portal. It had been healing itself, Setsuna recognized.

"What the..." a male voice started, and Setsuna was relieved to hear Ranma rejoin them. She saw him staring at the new girl, eyes wide. "Ath-"

"Lykaios, follow him!" the black haired girl shouted, and she began sprinting after the battered demon.

A second form left the roof, presumable Lykaios. There wasn't time for details as both he and the woman sprinted, but she could make out grey and gold from whatever he was wearing. The Demonata slipped on the remains of whatever fool mage opened the portal, but that sent it tumbling into the beautifully colored portal. Immediately, it began to shrink, but both the man and woman managed to jump in after it in time.

There was silence following.

Ranma made a confused sound, leaning against his scythe. Setsuna could see blood both human crimson and demon foreign covering him. "So, can anyone tell me who that was? And why it smells like burned meat and burning building?"

Now that Setsuna thought about it, the smell of a fire was beginning to overtake the ozone. She was reminded of her deflected dagger, and her eyes went wide. She looked towards the building with the melted glass, and deep in its bowels she could see an orange glow. "...We should leave."

"In a moment," Ranma muttered. "Galruk..." One of the Urgoks came over, standing next to Kresh. Only then did Setsuna notice that she didn't see the other Hunter. "Help me with Femern."

He walked over to the sidewalk, and Setsuna saw the pale form lying there motionless. Her stomach dropped out from under her. _No..._

Ranma knelt next to the small, bulky form and sighed heavily. He shook his head, giving a curse. Setsuna slowly walked over, a morbid curiosity overtaking her mind's pleas to run, to look away, to defy what she knew would be there.

The Hunters had been working so well together, there's no way just that one sonic roar could have... Setsuna beheld the Urgok, animalistic eyes vacant and glazed, blood seeping from its mouth and ears to form a small puddle. It's shield was still attached to its arm, but the spear had clattered off to the side.

That single attack had killed one of Ranma's Hunters, Demonata who hunted other Demonata and _knew_ magic. If it had managed that to one of them, what would it have done if it had been Hotaru standing before the roar? If it had been Michiru? Rei? Minako? Herself, even? Could any of them have fared any better?

It was a glaring reminder of a fact Setsuna had thought she already knew. Just because they were learning magic, just because they were becoming that much more powerful and deadly, didn't mean that they weren't just as fragile. Death was death. Luck still played a drastic role in battle, and it wasn't always on their side, as this Urgok could attest to.

"_You'll know, when you see the first Hunter dead and realize that your side isn't as invincible as you thought..."_

Setsuna spat a curse in her mind, hating the words of her future self. Of her future _possible_ self, damn her!

_Destruction... Destruction... Destruction.._.

"His name was Femern?" Setsuna asked quietly, laying a hand on Ranma's shoulder.

Ranma nodded, collecting the limp body in his arms. "He had a mate at home, Setsuna... He was my responsibility. I told him to come out here, and now he's... Dammit." She squeezed his shoulder in sympathy, the maelstrom of uncertainty still roiling within her mind.

"He knew what he was getting into, Lord Ranma," Kresh mentioned, large eyes peering at the slain companion. "You asked for two Hunters, and he and Galruk volunteered. You hold no blame." The larger demon turned that stare up to Ranma, animal eyes sad but steeled. "We are your _familiar_, Lord Ranma. We die for you. It's what we do, just like every other Demonata we've slain. Do you think their master cares when each dies?"

Ranma huffed what could have been a laugh, then shook his head. "Nice try, Kresh."

Kresh gently took Femern from Ranma. "You are the master we had always dreamed of, Lord Ranma: one who cares. All of us are happy to fight for you and, if necessary, to die for you. Galruk will take care of his body." He retreated back towards the other Urgok.

"To feel such regret over the loss of a single soldier. You are, perhaps, a more caring ruler than I ever was, Ranma," Crystal mentioned as she came over, watching the three demons with her emotions masked.

Ranma shook his head again, rising to a stand. Setsuna removed her hand from his shoulder. "He wasn't a soldier, Crystal. He was a simple hunter, someone who went out of the village and brought home food for the others... I'm not so naïve though as to wish I hadn't brought him here though. We need all the help we can get."

Setsuna watched him, then the Urgoks. The first Hunter was dead. Who was next? She knew already though, and she vowed to do everything she could to prevent it.

"_When you are standing in the hospital after two friends are brought to the very brink of death."_

XxX

With a shout, Ryoga struck with his fist, watching Urtec knocked it aside and lash out a vicious return. Ryoga staggered back, then collapsed to a knee, panting.

Five ESG. Five times Earth's gravity. The pressure holding Ryoga down was ungodly, like fighting with a thousand pound bag on his back. It was a struggle to even hold his fists up after so long. Urtec had no such problems, not near as skilled as Ryoga but already conditioned to the gravity.

However, in the weeks he had been here, Ryoga had been getting better each day. It was taking him longer and longer to get exhausted. He no longer consciously recognized the gravity, even if his body did. There were times now he could match Urtec's speed in short bursts.

"Enough," the bald monk said, dropping his stance to stand with his hands clasped behind his back. "Honored guest does well. Tea, and then we continue." Ryoga nodded, thankfully, and Urtec left the room.

Ryoga used the time to catch his breath. He knew the layout of the room well, having spent all his time here. Box shaped, fifteen paces between grey metal walls. Two doors, one that led to a bathroom and the other back into the Terran Palace. One of the doors had in large writing "DO NOT LEAVE. TURN AROUND. OTHER DOOR. PLEASE. WRONG DOOR." That even helped Ryoga not wander out of the training room once or twice, when he remembered to check the door for writing. Finally, there was a cot against one wall, as Ryoga also slept here under the intense gravity.

Urtec returned bearing a tray with two cups and a pot. He balanced it steadily, even as he went from earth's gravity to the room's, then set it down in the center of the room and sat with his legs crossed. Ryoga followed his example, settling down across from him.

"So tell me more about this place," Ryoga asked after taking his own cup of tea.

Urtec took a sip, watching him calmly. "Which part?"

In their time here together, they had spoke about themselves, and Ryoga found that this ancient palace had a detailed history, if embellished with mythology. Normally he didn't care about history, but there wasn't much else to talk about.

"The Queen, I guess."

"Ruler of the Moon Kingdom has always been of Serenity linage. First, as you know, came from Earth, formerly noble residing in this very palace. Her name was Dianna Serenity. After great war called Planets' Collision, when armies of all planets fought each other on barren planet Nemesis, it was Dianna who proposed union over conquest. Convincing, passionate, the great woman won over war-devastated planets, forming the United Kingdoms of the Solar System.

"Base of power was decided on Earth's moon. Great palace built there. Dianna was raised to head of union, which later was renamed to the Moon Kingdom. Head of Moon Kingdom was renamed to Queen, and so Dianna became Queen Serenity. Great Queen brought stability, rebuilding planets until scars of war healed. She formed elite core of warriors for defense, four for personal guards and five for defending the Moon Kingdom. Warriors called Senshi.

"The Queen passed title to her daughter, Queen Hera Serenity II, and died. Queen Serenity II was awful Queen. Men-biased. Genderist? No... Sexist, I believe the word is. Killed male Senshi, replaced with female. Laws passed, removing rights of men. No intelligent jobs. No intelligent schooling. Limits on male wealth."

Urtec shook his head, disgusted. "The Queen was assassinated, but damage was done. Hera's daughter took throne, Queen Tessa Serenity III. Queen Serenity III was good but weak. Could not fix Queen Serenity II's damage. Tried for many years and failed. The kingdom fell into chaos. She killed herself.

"Finally, there was Queen Crystal Serenity IV, Tessa's daughter. New great Queen. She fix many, many problems. Kingdom stabilized again. Recovered some male rights, but could not fix all. Had daughter, Princess Selene Serenity V. Moon Kingdom later attacked by Dark Moon Kingdom. Senshi died. All planets but Earth died. Queen Serenity IV died. Rulers in this palace died. The Moon Kingdom fell.

"I could tell you more about each Queen, if honored guest wishes, but we have finished tea. Let us continue," Urtec concluded, setting his cup on the tray and moving it to the side of the room.

Ryoga didn't know how much of Urtec's stories he believed, but obviously someone had lived in this oddly futuristic ancient building, and the history had been recorded as such. It reminded him briefly of that one story he hadn't really paid attention to, the Greek one, about the war over a woman. One side was Trojan, he remembered faintly. Like this, that was recorded history, but embellished with mythology, gods fighting and ancient people living on the Moon.

Ryoga fell into a stance, his muscles still sore from before, and Urtec did the same. With a shout, he move in.

As they battled, Ryoga looking oddly sluggish and ungraceful, Urtec spoke, "Me, my father, his father, his father, and so on, we all swear oath of servitude to Queen Serenity. The Queen is dead, but not forgotten. We serve in way we think she would have wished. We maintain the Terran Palace in hopes that one day it might be reclaimed."

Ryoga wished him luck in that, dropping down to sweep out the monk's legs. Urtec stumbled but remained standing, and Ryoga went through the agony of rising up again to block the retaliation.

Soon, Ryoga hoped, he would be strong enough to beat the stronger Ranma.

XxX

The day after the Urgok's death, Ranma didn't let up his daily training session. He was among the first to arrive, a few minutes before the scheduled time.

As the rest slowly trickled in, Ranma noticed something unusual with Minako's coming. Mainly, she didn't come alone. Two people, a man and a woman both obviously older than her, flanked her either side, with Minako looking slightly embarrassed. The two shared features with her as well, suggesting that they were her parents.

Mrs. Aino studied the man her daughter had identified as her _sensei._ She didn't know what she was expecting exactly, but he wasn't it. His uniform, she was guessing a male version of her daughter's _fuku,_ was outlandish. He looked younger than she thought too, though in his hard eyes she could see he was older. Fairly handsome with his striking blue eyes, but nothing to grow weak in the knees over. Her daughter might disagree at that age.

Mr. Aino put his hand on Minako's shoulder as he regarded Ranma. "You are Ranma-sensei, I presume?"

Ranma planted his scythe before him. "I am."

"Our daughter has told us much about you. We thought we'd finally come and see the man who made Mina become a high school dropout," the man remarked flatly.

"Oh, be nice, dear," his wife said, laying a hand on his arm. She turned to Ranma. "It was quite the surprise when Mina first admitted to being one of this city's famous Sailor Scouts, though it was worrisome when we heard that she was dropping out of school because of it. We don't pretend to understand the kind of stress and burdens placed on you, saving the world and all, but we worry about the afterwards, when things are safe and our daughter lost the opportunity to complete her schooling."

These weren't the first parents that wished to check him out, coming with typical parental concerns. Ami's mother had come much sooner, the day after Ami dropped from school and told her.

"Look, I'll be completely honest with you. I didn't do it because I wanted to. I think these girls are too young for this sort of life, but they are all we have. If we want to save people's lives, we need all of them. Right now, what we are facing is beyond these girls' limits. I'm forcing this strict training routine so that none of them die out there, so that I can be assured that any one of them will be fine without me looking over her shoulder the whole time," Ranma said.

Mr. Aino didn't look pleased, but he nodded. "I understand that looking at the future is meaningless if Mina isn't even alive for it, and for your efforts I thank you, but I will not stand for my daughter becoming a hero only to be left forever dependent on others because she can't find proper work without a finished education."

"Then go establish on paper that she is finishing high school at home. I can't help you here."

Mr. Aino thought about it, then nodded again. With some effort, they could pull that off, and his daughter would be fine when she finally quit being a Sailor Scout, whenever that was. "We will try that, thank you. Now, the other reason we came here is to see what kind of man you are, Ranma-sensei."

Minako groaned, unable to step away from her father's grip on her shoulder.

Ranma only sighed, settling himself for a conversation that would likely eat into practice time.

XxX

"Cancel my spell! Setsuna!" Ranma shouted, a simple ball of fire leaving his hand.

Setsuna brought her hand up, concentrating. She sent her intent and magic at his spell, trying to put it out like he had done to hers in demonstration. Nothing happened to the fire. Cursing, she stepped back, and her hand came up again, bringing with it a sudden rush of wind blew the flame off course and mostly diminished it.

Ranma watched her attempt, then shook his head. "As you can see, affecting someone else's spell is difficult. You can avoid getting burned by your own fire, but now I want you to learn how to avoid the same with someone else's. This will be the focus of our next few practices."

Only the day after the first death among them, Setsuna noted the shift from how to best kill the Demonata to how to defend against the stronger ones. Before, Ranma had told them to dodge or block enemy spells, rather than try to influence them, because it generally produced the same effect with less energy. Now, though, it was obvious "generally" didn't cut it anymore.

Forever honing them into stronger weapons, each day of training another stroke of the whetstone.

Presently Ranma was breaking them into groups and listing advice. As she was paired with Hotaru, Setsuna's mind fell back to her feelings for him, her mistimed admittance, her yearning for someone that could make the loneliness of guarding the Time Gates just a little bit less lonely.

_I seriously need to move on._

Fortunately, Mamoru had shown up today. Unlike the Scouts, he was allowed to continue going to college and miss some of the training sessions. If Ranma was already taken by Nemesis, then Setsuna would at least take the advice on this from Queen Meioh. She would give the reincarnated Terran Prince a chance, maybe help distract him from losing Usagi.

It helped that he wouldn't die of age too. While alone at the Time Gates, watching the happenings on Earth, she had vowed that no matter how lonely, no matter how convinced she was that she loved someone through her observations, she wouldn't ever do more than watch if he could only live a normal lifespan. Allowing herself to get too close would only end with tragedy time and time again, resulting in an even heavier loneliness each time she lost a man to time.

Shaking her head of such thoughts, at least for the moment, she focused back on what she was supposed to be doing. She and Hotaru were to try sending weak spells at each other and to cancel them before they made contact. Taking a breath, she started with a baseball sized flame.

The sun rose to its peak as they worked, more or less succeeding, and began to descend as they tried fine tuning the ability. There was still several hours before the day's practice was to end when there were several unexpected arrivals.

Setsuna's magic overwhelmed Saturn's spell of lightning, causing the crackling bolt to fizzle into sparks a foot away from her hand, leaving her perfectly unharmed. She panted, exhausted from the effort, and was relieved when Saturn stopped the attack. Ranma had been speaking truth when mentioning the amount of work it took, and doing nothing else for an entire day with only shorts breaks didn't help.

Setsuna fought down the sickness, a queasy feeling in her torso paired with a slight headache. It would only get worse the more she tried working with magic.

Wiping her forehead with a gloved hand, she noticed four individuals enter the construction site they were using. The presence of the forth immediately caught her attention, and glancing towards Ranma, she sensed trouble brewing.

XxX

_Amazons... Always a pain._

XxX

"_Ni hao,_ Ranma," a cheerful voice called, only the faintest trace of shyness detectable.

"Keep working," Ranma told the Senshi, then cursed to himself and made his way over to the newcomers. "What are you doing here, Shampoo?"

Saffron, Kiima, and Feyri weren't unwelcome, but the forth, Shampoo, Ranma had thought safely back in China, another tie to Nerima severed. The girl looked much the same as he remembered, though two things struck him odd with her behavior, mainly the lack of a greeting glomp and the claim of husband or _Airen._

Feyri, standing next to the Amazon ex-suitor, spoke for her, "Your marriage was officially absolved, but there is no reason the girl can't stay in Japan." Even young, beautiful, and considerably taller, Feyri reminded Ranma too much of the Old Ghoul.

Ranma snorted. "Japan's a big country. Why is she _here?"_

That seemed to be the cue for Shampoo, and she smiled and lifted a covered basket that, admittedly, smelled fantastic. "Shampoo bring you yummy food for after long day. No charge!"

_Mind over stomach... Mind over stomach... That smells really, really good, but mind over stomach,_ Ranma struggled to remind himself. He forced his eyes away from the basket and memories of how delicious the Nekohanten's food was and said, "Shampoo, I told you before, you _can't_ be here. It's dangerous, and I don't mean Nerima dangerous." He jerked a finger towards the child Saffron. "I mean Phoenix Mountain "everyone is Akane" dangerous."

The reminder seemed to strike a chord in her, thankfully, but nothing more than a little wince. Feyri, however, wasn't deterred, much like Ranma knew Cologne wouldn't be. "Be that as it may, young Shampoo's Juuban branch of the Nekohanten is our current place of residence. She cannot leave without throwing us on the streets."

_Bullshit excuse._ He was surprised to see that she had indicated the Phoenix people as those who lived there too. "What, she got you all working there?"

"Indeed." Feyri paused to peer at him, and for a moment Ranma had a flash of the shriveled face and large eyes squinting. "You speak like you are defending yourself from something. There is nothing wrong in this girl supporting us and wishing to remain here. It is her right as a warrior to be _in_ the action, yet you complain that she is only close by."

"_Ranma,"_ Nemesis cut in, _"This Feyri is a crafty one. While it is likely her intentions are exactly as you think, you will not succeed in pushing Shampoo away... You should speak."_

The problem with being the only person able to hear Nemesis was that the moments where he listened to her made odd silences to everyone else. He sighed. "Shampoo, can I speak with you alone for a moment?"

Feyri opened her mouth, but she closed it, frowning pensively at him. Her denial was obvious, but what could she say?

Shampoo nodded and accepted being led off a short distance. If there was an Amazon technique to listen from far distances, he was sure Feyri was using it. To his former 'wife,' he said, "Look, Shampoo, if you want to stay here, I won't stop you. However, the danger is real, and there is nothing you can do against this enemy. And if your plan is to try to "win" me, know now that there is already someone I care about... I will not tolerate you trying to 'eliminate' her as an obstacle either."

The blue haired girl paused at that, emotions being kept from her face. Then, she shook her head and beamed a smile at him, holding up her basket. "Shampoo only wish to bring you food. Hoping we could be friends."

_There is no 'only' with Amazons. I don't trust her enough for this._ He accepted the basket. "Thank you, Shampoo."

"Ranma very welcome!" she said cheerfully, then retreated back to the others for a quick word before leaving.

Watching her go, Ranma reminded himself again to not trust Feyri and her plans. Shampoo would be in town during this, then. A tie to Nerima not severed. He could only hope that the others remained separate.

XxX

"It... stopped," Ranma said, slowing the Senshi trailing behind him. He flipped open his communicator to tell the others, but Crystal's voice stopped him:

"Ranma, the mage ceased his or her build-up at the mall. I..."

He understood the ending, having his own senses out. More build-ups, almost guaranteed attempts at crossing, had begun, while the others ended as soon as he or the group of scouts approached the gatherer. This approach was tricky, new, and certainly guided by a power in the immediate area.

_The mage that got away must be involved,_ he concluded. He faced the three girls with him and pressed the speak button on his communicator. "Crystal, take the one at the park. Setsuna, take the Outers and confront the one at the city hall. Inner Guard, you will meet with Galruk at the intersection... I don't know the name – around seven blocks north of that ice cream parlor you're always at. Galruk will find the mage and should stop him before he finishes."

One benefit to multiple attempts was that the spattering of magic that was hardly found in the air these days stretched thin between them, slowing the time it took for the crossers to finish.

Voices chorused a "Yes, sir" over the communicator, and the girls with him left to where he had directed them. That left him with Kresh.

He nodded at the demon, and they both sprinted towards the last crossing, near the western end of the district. The many buildings in the way provided little obstacle, but traveling the distance took some time. As they moved, however, Ranma felt more attempted crossings cropping up elsewhere in Juuban. One halted abruptly, and two more sprang up.

He cursed, while Kresh only increased their speed.

"I'm redirecting to the northern canal," Queen Serenity said over the line once her target stopped, and that was followed shortly by Setsuna mentioning that hers had stopped early as well. Ranma directed her and the Outers to the subway station.

He and Kresh reached the area of their target, but to his dismay, it was a restaurant crowded despite the late hour. The spell gathering fizzled away, but there were too many people to pinpoint its source. Cursing again, Ranma turned them to head back, leaving the caster to go free.

Two more ended – not completed – and Yuka's voice appeared over the communicator, a tad smug, "I got one."

Over the link with his Urgoks, Ranma heard Galruk say, _"He stopped when I came close. I can't tell which person it was."_

Ranma's mind churned, frustrated by this approach. The numbers were going down, but they were hardly stopping the enemy, and they were getting spread far from each other. There were two more on the far east side of Juuban, furthest from him and Kresh, but no one was close enough to help. He and Kresh used their speed to meet it, likely the fastest to get there even with the distance.

Crystal helped manage where the different teams should go, and while they were still far away, that was the last of the present attempts if no more appeared.

Fortunately, the two Ranma and Kresh were heading towards were close to each other, only a block or two apart. With all the currents of magic being gathered, the Urgok would be able to remain away from Ranma to face the threat, especially if it went away as fast as the others. Kresh was assigned the northern most of the two, while he took the south.

Too late Ranma realized that their treks took them too long, it having started before they even reached the west attempt, and he arrived at his site just in time to see the mage explode in a gory pillar, splattering the dark street and leaving behind a starkly obvious beige window. He had no backup right now, feeling Kresh's target leading him away further from him.

Already transformed, Ranma grabbed his scythe and pulled it over his shoulder from the holster on his back. The aura of Nemesis bled into him, washing away his fears and doubts. Short of a Demon Master, he had little to fear, and her presence helped reassure him of that fact.

"_Careful, Avatar. This is a night of sly blades in the dark,"_ she cautioned.

There was hardly any delay before two figures left the portal, and Ranma sighed, moving forward to confront them. He searched for the others, pinpointing the faint traces of Senshi and the beacons of those trying to cause additional crossings. Considering that they had their own targets, it would be some time before any would be free to help. Fortunately, no more attempts had begun.

"When you are all done, come to my position," he said over the communicator, then switched it off and tucked it away. He exhaled, then sized up his opponents.

It was similar to the situation he and Crystal had found themselves in not long ago, when they fought the mage who called himself "One" and the demon he called "of the New Batch." A white furred demon that appeared exactly the same as the last Greater Demonata was the first, while the second was another human.

It was a man, with brown hair that hung partly before his dark eyes. He was smiling, but it was a tight little thing that appeared strictly business, not genuine emotion. Oddly, he was wearing a white dress shirt tucked in with a dark vest over it. He appeared not quite of the proper time, and Ranma was reminded of the last guy's archaic accent.

The man saw Ranma and nodded at him, then began to roll up his sleeves. "Good evening, Ranma Uziki-Saotome. My name is Two, the second of twelve. I'm afraid I am here to slay you."

Planting the butt of his scythe on the ground, Ranma appraised his opponents again. "You are the second strongest of the twelve, then? Why would you come here alone if your leader already failed?"

The man blinked at him, his arms coming to rest at his sides once the sleeves were up. "You mean One? One was the weakest of us and most easily replaceable. The numerical identity we take is of ascending value, ordered by our leader, where Twelve is the strongest. I am in fact the second weakest of that rating."

The demon with the man snorted, and a scythe of bone grew from its hands, similar to the last. Ranma stared at it, remembering the last one he had to fight. It was there to learn from him, to take his abilities and counter them. Surely... this one didn't have the same experience of the first one he and Kresh had killed. That was impossible.

"Nothing personal," the man continued, "but my wife worries, so I don't wish to dally. Let us begin."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ranma was already moving, hoping for a quick end for both. Even as he did, however, he heard the sound of glass shattering behind him – where he had been standing – and the Demonata had moved as well, unbelievably fast and engaging him head on.

Ranma was thankful he had had the foresight to remove his gravity ring first, and the ease of still adjusting to a lighter world had him easily match the demon. Despite the impracticality of it, it was immediately obvious this demon had the same skill the last had had before it died, and its scythe met his in quick slashes where neither had the advantage.

Ranma hoped some of the others would finish soon.

Feinting, Ranma rammed his shoulder into the demon and blurred past its knocked-back form to engage the mage. Two was expressionless as he waved a hand before him, then ducked as Ranma crashed into a wall of ice and went sailing over him with the clear shards. Landing with a spin, Ranma prepared his weapon for a cleaving strike, but he noticed the white blur already upon him as he did, and a powerful blow met the demon's strike in a parry that jolted through his whole body.

The demon's fangs were bared, dripping saliva, as they struggled against each other. Ranma began to step back to disengage from it, but he found something was holding his foot back. A brief flick of his eyes was all he allowed, and he saw earth was now encasing his feet, a snare surely from the mage.

There was an explosion of movement as he ripped his foot out and the parry broke apart, turning into a slash and block flurry as Ranma struggled to free his other foot. Too late he noticed nets weaving from the ground, trying to encircle him, while the demon still pressed its advantage.

_End it fast!_ _"Fubuki Sousou!"_ he shouted, pulling together the attack as fast as possible and tossing it out.

The Demonata saw it coming and clearly had time to dodge it. However, it's black eyes locked on his as it cupped its clawed hands together, and the waves of magic pulsing from the demon shifted around it. A black ball giving off dark wisps and vapors, a void in the dark, appeared and shot forward, meeting Ranma's white.

Even as he canceled the snares forming around him, Ranma watched, stunned, as the demon's spell absorbed his gladly, both slowing at the contact and trying to outdo the other, and then in a show of power, the _Fubuki Sousou_ exploded early, and still the black attack pressed on to him, albeit slowly now.

The fatigue of using that move reached Ranma's limbs as he dodged, and he didn't look as he heard crumbling stone from where the attack must have landed. His move was powerful enough to leave his whole body taxed in such a notable way, yet still he was overcome. _Dammit._

The demon tried to engage him in melee again, but Ranma slammed Nemesis into the street, creating an explosion of gravel that split the asphalt and propelled the demon into the air, caught in the blast. Wasting no time, Ranma accepted being pelted by rock fragments as he charged forward at the mage, hoping to end him early.

The man was obviously not particularly skilled in the physical department, but still he slashed a hand and shouted a word, and a shield protected him from Ranma's slash. There was another, and a blast of air knocked Ranma back. He landed on his feet, intending to charge back in, but instead of meeting solid ground, the asphalt sank inward at his weight like it was mud, and he was buried to his thighs. The earth heaved as it solidified again, the mage giving Ranma that small smile again.

"Your speed is inhuman," Two said, calmly watching the trapped Ranma. The street began cracking around Ranma as he tried freeing himself. "As is your strength. I have great respect for you."

His danger sense went off with a sharp spike, and Ranma followed his instincts in dropping his body level with the street. He heard the sound of a blade cleaving where his body had been, then finally ripped himself free and rolled out, immediately engaged by the Demonata again.

Ranma pulled more magic from Nemesis, quick grasps of it to fill himself to the very brim. Once his body could take no more, he readied himself to unleash it, even as he still clashed with the demon. The white beast had begun including spells to its assault, particularly the fire spells One had used against him.

He knew he only had one shot at ending it, otherwise it would only come back better prepared against him. It was time for some of his more wild ideas.

A jet of lava erupted from a clenched fist, splattering the demon and causing it to howl. As it tried to retreat back, Ranma engaged it again, finally scoring deep gouges along its body and leaving the demon a mangled mess of blood and shredded meat. Still the demon tried retreat, throwing up that pink shield One had used, but Ranma broke through it and continued.

Ice tried to snare him, but Ranma shattered the attempt, and he sent the shards at the demon with an unnecessarily powerful blast of kinetic energy. They pelted holes in its hide, spurting more blood as injuries formed faster than it could heal. A quick bolt of lightning was followed by a second _Fubuki Sousou_, and the unprepared demon howled with painful resonation as its body was torn to pieces.

To be safe, Ranma spewed more molten lead onto its bloody remains, sizzling the demon to where nothing was left. Too much attention on one opponent left his back open for the ball of acid that splattered over his back and the the ground to buck and suddenly try to devour him with gaping fangs of asphalt black.

Dry of magic from ending the demon, Ranma had to endure the blinding pain on his back as he ripped out more magic and cleared the substance before healing himself and his uniform. For the manipulated ground, he simply caused it to be destroyed in a large crater, then pressed Two before the man could continue the assault.

Ranma landed on the ground and tried to lurch into a full sprint. He managed three steps before his foot snagged, and moving too fast for his reflexes, he went tumbling into the dirt. With armor, he barely felt the fall, but the time spent recovering left him open for the following jet of fire, and Ranma barely rolled away.

"_Chaos bolt!"_ Ranma gasped, tossing his basic Senshi attack. It wasn't that powerful, but its energy demand was nearly nothing and it bought him time.

Two tried to swat the expanding black orb away, but it burned into his wrist in what surely had to be agonizing pain. However, the cold-faced man only cradled his wrist before continuing his spells, showing no reaction to the pain.

Snares were this man's game, in addition to the speed he could pull off spells. Ranma noticed that as he dodged another sinking-ground and ice-grab at his legs, as well as blasts of ice and raised defenses holding off his attacks. Tired of the quick shells the man could throw over himself, Ranma went for the kill, risking another portion of his energy.

For a third time, he cupped his hands and shouted, _"Fubuki Sousou!"_ The triple combination of energies punched through the hastily erected shields, then exploded against Two.

Ranma assumed he had won, seeing the misty aftermath of his spell. He approached cautiously, limbs straining and energy falling low. The fatigue of a third use was brutal, but he refused to allow it to show. To his surprise, he found Two still alive, lying supine with his clothing now in tatters and unrecognizable as something formerly "nice."

Using the man as an example, Ranma had the street bend up to bind Two's wrists and feet, and he remained at a safe distance, ready to react to an attempted spell. Watching the heavily breathing mage, Ranma asked, "So, Two, tell me who your leader is. Why does he want me dead?"

The man coughed, but it came out like a wheeze. When it finished, he shook his head, brown hair limp and fallen away from his eyes. "I'm sorry, Mr. Saotome, but I cannot answer that. Superb move at the end there, and these bindings are well done, unable to be manipulated by me in return. You are indeed a formidable opponent."

Slamming his scythe into the ground, Ranma snapped, "Speak, damn you, or you die here." The body of Nemesis impaled the weakened street.

Kresh's opponent had finally slipped away for good, and the Urgok was rushing back, desperately needing the magic. Ranma felt the Senshi approaching as well, but only Crystal was close. All the better.

Two's smile returned, brown eyes peering towards where Kresh was approaching. "Well, I congratulate you on your victory. Forgive me, but I must go now."

"Like hell you-" Ranma started to say, but the street erupted in a violent explosion, and a wind sent all the dust and debris directly at Ranma. It bothered him little, but it interrupted his vision for crucial moments, and while Ranma tried a wide-spread fire attack, things cleared to show no corpse and the portal had closed.

It was over for now, and Ranma heaved out a tired sigh, nearly collapsing to the destroyed street to sit down and rest for a moment. He fished out the black ring Nemesis had given him and slipped it back on, holding back a groan as triple gravity began pulling on him. He made a better sweep to be sure all the attempted crossings had been stopped and that none were actively open. There weren't.

Nemesis remained silent, just her presence and the aura from touching the scythe. Ranma was left to his thoughts. For the first time, he regretted allowing Haruka go with Xycell. He wanted the extra fire power of another Outer, especially one that would be properly trained like the others.

That was only Two of twelve, the second weakest. These mages were something else.

Dully, he repeated to himself, _I _hate_ proficient, non-Senshi magic users._

XxX

"I still think it's so cool that you have all those maids and butlers at your house," she said as the museum came into sight. "And you even have your own limo. These are so hard to find in Japan."

Eleven smiled, leaned with one arm on an armrest as he peered out his tinted window. His gaze lingered on the approaching building before turning to her, and he drawled, "Just a passing fancy of mine. What about you, though? Secretary at a large corporation, aspiring artist already with such beautiful talent, a simply gorgeous woman, and just twenty years old. Tell me, what other secrets does the Azami Fukada hold?"

She was blushing, but a smile was there too. "I love gardening in the traditional style, and not just _karesansui._ I have always loved nature. I find it disappointing that Tokyo lacks the simple beauty that the outer cities have in such abundance."

"On the contrary, I find Tokyo to have an ample supply of beauty, if one is fortunate enough to meet her. She can draw the eye like a vibrant flower in a bland field of pebbles."

Her cheeks darkened. "Such a cheesy romantic... I happen to like poetry as well."

"Shall I compare thee to a summer day?" he quoted, now with an amused smile as the limo slowed to a stop. "Ah, but while good Shakespeare could speak flowers, I find it cliché since the actual plays. Come, let us enjoy this display of what the world has deemed timeless. I feel particularly interested in the ancient collective." She didn't need to know that he had been around before most of the museum's works were made, and that he had been alive when acclaimed William had first compiled those plays of siphoned ideas.

She thanked him as he offered a hand to help her out, and she gladly linked elbows when he presented his. "You are such an interesting man. What does one who can have anything see in simple me?"

"Something unique and precious, a personality that no one on this small planet of countless individuals could ever imitate. I see a woman, of such lovely face and form and mind, and my desire to know her consumes that faithless enemy I call my wit. People, I think, underestimate the fragility of their minds, their will, and only once the freedom of it is lost do they realize. You, my dear, have stricken mine, and I simply must have more."

Laughing lightly, she leaned into him, still blushing. "Why must you make me feel so special? I'm sure there are dozens, hundreds, of other women more beautiful and interesting than myself elsewhere in this city."

Eleven tipped his hat to the man who opened the door for them, grinning. "Indeed, what strings have you cast over my heart? Already, am I simply dancing to your tune like a helpless marionette?"

"Oh, we both know its your hand and my dancing, and I don't think I would try and cut those strings if I could. Look, the modern art is right past the unearthed relics expo. That's where we'll find the paintings I hope to match eventually."

They moved, unhurried, enjoying conversation. Eleven took pleasure in this simple flower he had stumbled across one day, and while he wanted her a part of his collection, it wasn't to be under the compulsion he had cast over the others. The most important part of her, besides her pleasant company, was the powerful spark inside that said she could be an awesome magic user. He intended to get her to reach that potential while loyal to him.

As they moved towards the modern arts and were walking past the displays of archeological findings, simple artwork or culturally significant objects, two rocks caught his attention. He rolled currents of magic around his fingers, feeling its heaviness in this time of a dying planet. He read its display: _Stones Revered By Ancient Nomads, Likely Superstitions About Powers or Deified._

Marvelous. His suspicions paid off quite nicely. Now, he could enjoy his time with Azami, and once they were finished, he could get to business on his own time.

XxX

Ranma woke up sore, as was the usual. Only the nights Nemesis deemed the dream-training dangerous to his health did he get rest and wake up fresh and rested. Yuka was already gone, also increasingly common as she recovered from the trauma of her time in the... he thought it was called the Negaverse.

He had since grown numb to the sight of the dark green coffin resting in the room. It's wood was one native only to Nemesis, though none would realize. In order for her to produce that new body, she needed a secure place for it to grow – a womb of sorts – and the funeral-box was suiting. Of course, it had raised quite the alarm from the house's other occupants.

Ranma made it to the kitchen, where Setsuna was watching the news. She gestured to food in a pan, crimson eyes glued to the screen. Ranma thanked her, moving to make his plate. Other than the small clinks of his actions, the only sound between them was the news.

"_-and in other news, the Iwaji Museum was robbed last night by an unknown person or group of persons. Both the museum personnel and the police are struggling to find how the hoist was accomplished, given a lack of any evidence that there was a break-in apart from the missing items. Apparently, whomever is responsible ignored all the timeless and valuable arts, in addition to stored money, and took only two stones originally found in a western region of Hokkaido._

"_Very little are known about the stones, and those at the museum are only glad that it wasn't something more significant-"_

Ranma ignored the television, sitting for his breakfast. Setsuna eventually turned it off, turning to him. She looked cute in her big fluffy robe over her night clothes – though he remembered sheepishly that she didn't exactly wear night clothes when sleeping.

Her expression presently was serious. "Tonight is the night they are leaving."

Ranma nodded, pushing his plate away and patting his stomach as he finished. Once it was all down, he said, "I know. While she didn't do much, I wish Bec wasn't going. It was reassuring knowing she was here."

"Who knows, it could be better that we'll have her skill there, in _their_ universe. The Magician seemed sure in his ability to resolve the problem." Setsuna didn't believe it, considering what she saw in Crystal Tokyo and the Time Gates after, but Ranma might. Either way, it made conversation. "And she can always come back if they aren't accomplishing anything."

Ranma shook his head. "Even if there isn't a temporal issue where one day there is a year here, that girl found someone from her own time... Trust me, I know a bit about that. She will stay with him until the end of her days unless it's absolutely necessary otherwise."

Setsuna nodded in understanding. She paused for a moment, then said, "I hope you don't mind that I won't be there to see them go. Tonight, Mamoru and I have a date."

Awkwardness entered the conversation, and Ranma hesitated in answering. They both clearly recalled her small confession and his refusal. Obviously, Ranma knew that she would have to move on once he turned her down, but he felt... oddly saddened that she was turning to someone else.

He also recalled Crystal Tokyo, the Earthen Prince as King at her side. He hadn't taken the match seriously then, at least not with _this_ Setsuna, his Setsuna, but now... He hoped that unsettling feeling in his heart wasn't jealousy.

He mustered a smile. "So, you and Earth Boy, huh?"

"He isn't a bad guy. I figured I would give him a chance," she said with a small shrug.

"Yeah, he's a good man. Good luck tonight, then. No practice today; there are a few things I need to do."

XxX

"Tell Aunty that I said thank you. She really did help me get by in this time, and she taught me so much," Bec was saying. "And you, Ranma, thanks for helping me from the forest and after. I would have like to have learned magic from you, but I suppose we are too different. Bran will teach me."

Ranma smiled at her. "It was no problem. Good luck out there. Remember that you'll always have a home here if you want to come back, and we could always use your help."

Bec nodded. "I'll remember. Goodbye, Ranma."

She began to back away, turning to the small group standing around the portal that Beranabus had opened. The Japanese Disciple, Yuudai, was there for her, and they exchanged words, both smiling a bit too much. Ranma assumed that chemistry was beginning to form between them. At least Yuudai seemed nice enough, though Ranma admitted not knowing him at all.

_Sheesh, seems everyone's finding someone lately._

Beranabus made eye contact with Ranma, and a moment passed between them. The gnarled man with his outrageous beard gave a small nod, while Ranma gestured towards Bec and said, "You better take care of her."

Also with them were fifteen strangers of varying gender and ages. Those Beranabus had found with the spark that he was trying to recruit into Disciples. Their training would take place in the Demonata universe, while on the search for the one behind the recent stirrings here. Ranma wondered how many would live through it.

"_On a brighter side, that means fifteen less individuals that could be coerced into opening a portal here for demons to slip through,"_ Nemesis said through the scythe, and her illusion appeared shortly after, standing beside him.

"May your efforts prove fruitful, Queen of Old. For the sake of us all," Beranabus said finally. He gestured Yuudai through the portal first, then the recruits and Bec to follow.

Crystal nodded. "And yours, Magician. For the same reason."

The old man cracked a smile, then shook his head and dropped his expression. He turned to Ranma, dark eyes glistening. "Do not let the localization to this one district fool you into false security. Whomever is behind this may try to cross outside, and you will miss it in your inattentiveness. Already, there are powerful stirrings of magic on an island four hundred miles south of here. You must learn to feel the ripples of such actions from your location."

He paused for a breath, then grunted. "Goodbye." He turned and entered the blue light, and the window closed behind him.

Nemesis turned, frowning southward. Ranma felt the power contained in his scythe stir, something that Nemesis was doing, and then her eyes widened. "Ranma, you must go. The power gathering there... if that is turned into another window, it will be large enough for a Demon Master to cross. Warn the others, Avatar. It's the mage."

Ranma didn't hesitate. "Crystal, we have trouble. It's the mage we've been missing; he's doing something big on that island. I'm taking everyone with me. You stay here with Galruk, in case they try to sidetrack us with more crossings."

The woman, looking like only a girl in her civilian garb, stared at him, concerned. "Ranma, how big is it?"

"Demon Master big." Frowning, he turned from where Beranabus and the others had vanished from to face the island – if he tried hard enough, he could feel the 'ripples,' as Beranabus called it. "We are going to need transportation."

XxX

Ranma shook his head to clear the disorientation, then mumbled, "We are renaming that, right now. At the very least, 'Senshi Teleport.'" There was a ripping sound immediately following, and Kresh was there too. The Guardian had gated.

The eight Senshi, Urgok, and Tuxedo Kamen – the chosen tag along who stood in the center, rather than Yuka – had arrived on a rocky, sun-bleached terrain, on what appeared to be the upper portion of a mountain jutting from the ocean. The mainland could be seen from one side of their position, more than a few miles off.

While he had learned magic, soldiering, and any number of things in his second life during the Silver Millennium, Ranma had remained true to many things from the first. Ki had been his magic then, auras and projectiles, martial arts and his trusty danger-sense. He had made sure to perfect the techniques he had learned then.

From that ledge, he could feel the auras of nearly a dozen individuals just down from their position. Quieting the others, he went to that side and peered down. Apparently the island had been a bunker from World War II, the entrance cut into the rock and going into the mountain itself, and standing around that entrance were men dressed in modern military uniforms and carrying automatic firearms.

For a moment, Ranma just stared, testing its possibility for an illusion of a movie set or deception. He found their stance too professional, too similar to the soldiers he had met. The crux of the shifting currents of magic he could feel, literally a vortex of energy even more potent than had been in the air during the Silver Millennium, was deep below the soldiers, inside the bunker. Feeling that was sobering, recalling its possibility.

"Nem, confirm to me that it's that mage in there. Please," he said, earning him a look from Setsuna. The woman still appeared peeved that he had pulled her and Endymion's reincarnate from their date, but she understood necessity.

Nemesis didn't bother with a distracting illusion. _"He is here, at the heart of the energy. You cannot hesitate, Ranma."_

"Lord Ranma, the spell is nearing its completion," Kresh muttered quietly as to not attract the guards' attention. "We must go now."

Tightening his hold over the scythe, Ranma nodded. Damn it all. These were men, not demons. He could kill them thoughtlessly if necessary, innocent or not, but these girls behind him, the Senshi dubbed the cutesy Sailor Scouts, they weren't ready to kill. Even soldiers had to train to willfully end another life.

_I'm sorry._ He moved so he was standing on the edge, obvious in the fading light, and snapped, "Magic ready! Move out!" He jumped.

It was a short fall for him, only twenty feet. The soldiers had heard his shout and turned, already aiming their weapons. Ranma cut the first in half with his fall, and magic made a weak dome in front of him right before he unleashed torrents of fire at the rest.

Fire. His most basic spell and something he had taught the Senshi on their first _day_ of learning magic, and these soldiers died.

There was gunfire, loud bangs and clangs when a bullet bounced off his shield. The fire hissed. Men screamed. The heat defined the air, the stench of cooked meat following, and in mere seconds, it all ended. Ranma stopped the fire and lowered his shield, eyes sweeping for anyone that might have escaped, but instead he saw a rolling ball and faded memories had him leap back suddenly. The motion was slowed with his ring on, but he still escaped the explosion from the grenade.

Setsuna ended beside him, immune to the death of the soldiers. "How could this man have acquired Japanese GSDF? That doesn't make any sense."

"Were those- were those normal people?" a small voice asked behind them, one of the girls.

"Bad guys always have their minions and hirelings," Ranma grunted. "Why stop now? We need to move, dammit. Keep close!" He ran forward, into the bunker, magic at the ready. He knew they would follow. Questions and shattered innocence could come later.

It started with a long metal hall, doors lining the way. He focused on his senses, for people around him, and felt safe from an ambush. For a precaution, he removed the gravity ring, lightening his body significantly. The hallway ended in a stairwell, and Ranma began descending. He wasn't going at his best speed as he needed the others to keep up, but only Kresh ran with him.

The stairs ended in a small landing with more doors and several branching halls. It was filled with more gunmen. Together with Kresh, they used the vortex of magic to engage them. Fire could deplete the oxygen in the air, however, so they instead switched to messier methods: blades of air, ice, and simple weapons.

As he danced between the streams of bullets, Ranma realized that this was his first time ever encountering firearms in a fight. It was odd to think that despite his strength, his magic, being a Senshi, all his powerful allies like Nemesis and Crystal, and everything else, a bullet through the head would kill him as surely as an overwhelming magic-based spell or any other weapon he had faced before.

Technological weaponry, including even a simple handgun, had been banned from warfare back in the Silver Millennium. Battles were to be about the skill of the army and its soldiers, not engineers, so even when Saturn had first declared open war against the Solar System, before the Moon Kingdom, battles had been fought on the ground with melee weapons. War wasn't to be a video game, where soldiers sat safely behind screens on planets or ships far away while machines clashed and only money and materials were lost. Where ending a population could be as dispassionate as pushing a button.

The revolutionized military, of course, had been a contributing factor to the Moon Kingdom's loss against the Dark Moon, whom had employed missiles and aircraft. Not the sole cause, but it contributed.

When it came down to it, in the present, no matter how surreal it was to be dodging bullets rather than fists, blades, or spells, the vortex of magic, the thought of a crossing Demon Master, the mage – all of it remained focused in Ranma's mind, and he tore those in his way apart to get there.

One thing he did notice, however, was how different these soldiers were in reacting to their lost cause. Not despair. Not courageous heroism. Not with anything he had seen before. They simple pointed and fired and died, with no regard to their own lives or position. They showed none of the usual humanity one did, even in the pitch of a desperate fight.

It was like they were mindless drones or being controlled.

Already half of the soldiers were dead when the girls began to show up at the mouth of the stairs. Ranma didn't expect the guards' attention to switch to them, but he kept an eye out in case they needed a quick shield, even in the midst of the slaughter and confusion.

What must they be thinking, seeing a sweep of his blade and the red spurt of blood following, a man falling and screaming, or when Kresh moved a fist and a soldier's body suddenly crumpled inward, broken and mangled until it was too critical for him to live?

One of the soldiers near the back turned towards the girls at the stairs, and Ranma sent a spell imitating the _Yamasenken_ at him. It would cleave him in half. Instead, the man shouted something Ranma didn't catch in the den of confusion and loud sounds, but when the soldier waved his hand, Ranma's spell stopped short, and abruptly a fork of blue lightning erupted towards the stairwell.

There was a girl's scream, barely audible in the gunfire and with the men's screams and groans. Ranma whirled to see a girl with aquamarine hair – Michiu then, Senshi Neptune – crumpled at the bottom of the stairs, with the others showing horrified faces. His attention was immediately back in the fight, but the image remained in his mind.

Lightning. The Senshi armor would protect her, as would her superhuman form, but... how powerful had it been? How long was she exposed to it? He couldn't remember, time seeming distorted as he dodged sprays of bullets and yet paused in the shock of encountering a _mage_ hidden among the soldiers.

Ranma used a burst of speed to reach the mage, seeing the man already beginning another spell yet stopping when he noticed Ranma only inches from him. The man's expression grew to surprised, then fearful, but as his lips still moved, Ranma already had his scythe at his side, and he began cleaving him apart.

Finishing the swing and severing the man in half, Ranma turned his weapon and split the man from groin to head in a second blow before his two pieces could even fall away from each other – a precaution. Four wet chunks of meat and bone fell to the ground, blood pooling immediately.

Ranma had turned for the rest, but he saw the last fall after a quick slash from Kresh. The whole encounter had taken only seconds, perhaps twenty to thirty of them, yet for Michiru that was more than enough for a hidden magic-user to strike a crippling blow.

Without approaching those at the stairs, knowing how frightful he might appear when splattered in blood, he asked softly in the sudden silence, "How is she?"

"Not good," Senshi Pluto said, kneeled beside the girl. "She will live, but she lost consciousness. Unless you can heal something like this, she might need treatment at the h-" Setsuna's voice hitched, and she rocked back from Michiru.

Ranma frowned, taking a step towards her – recalling instantly the threat still below them. "Setsuna, what's wrong?"

The others had finished coming down now, huddled around the injured girl. Setsuna, however, shook her head after a silent moment. "Send them back up."

"What? Setsuna, what is it? We need to move!"

She looked at him, eyes wide enough for him to see the whites. "They can't continue. All of you, go back up. Ranma, we will go on without them. They need to go back up!"

Bewildered, Ranma asked, "Setsuna, why? If this is what we think it is, I'm going to need all of them! What's the matter with you?"

"We can't risk another getting h- Behind you!"

Ranma felt it before her cry, several presences coming behind him from the doors. He swirled in place, calling up a shield to stop the inevitable gunfire. It came and was stopped, and as Ranma expected, one of the ambushers made motions suspicious of being another hidden mage.

The many shifting currents around him blinded him to specifics of who and when someone was casting.

However, the ground began splitting in a straight line for him, and Ranma used magic to stop the attack – whatever it might be. The split halted abruptly, a yawning opening into the earth stretching from the doorway. Ranma prepared to kill him, but too late he realized that there wasn't just one mage hidden there.

There was no scream, just a sickening thump from behind him. Someone gasped, and then there was a sound of a body hitting the floor.

"_CHAOS BOLT!"_ Ranma shouted, furious. He quickly killed off his emotions, however, forcing away the rage, then followed with, "_Moko Takabisha: Apathetic Edition."_ A white orb of ki followed the black Senshi attack.

Ranma didn't yet know what either would do to an average person, with no magical or intense physical training, but the attacks met the small group of attackers just before Kresh did. He knew that either way they wouldn't escape with their lives.

He turned again to the stairwell to see a sickening sight. Senshi Mercury was on the ground, face first – meaning her nose had been crushed in the fall – with a wound gushing blood from the back of her head. Already blood was pooling around her.

In a flash he was too her, with a hand over the surely fatal wound. He healed it, sealing the fractured skull fragments and closing the skin, but the soft tissue and her lifeless state he couldn't help. She still breathed, but head wounds... "Hotaru, do what you can for these two. The rest of you, keep moving."

He stood, then moved down the right hall. At the entryway, he turned to see only Setsuna had risen. The woman looked too shaken up, more so than Ranma had ever seen before – and he had seen her through the hardest of times before. The rest were in a numb shock, staring at their two downed friends.

_Damn it all._

"Let's go Kresh."

They went.

XxX

At the final door before the room holding the crux of all the powerful magic swirling around them, Ranma and Kresh paused for only a moment to prepare themselves. The demon shook his head, however. "We are too late. Three seconds, Lord Ranma."

He only just finished speaking when Ranma ripped open the metal door, bending its hinges, and as he did all the magic around them vanished in an instant, drawing into the room. All that thick, potent magic, called back into one purpose, for one spell, and Ranma witnessed with a racing heart a silhouette standing before a soft blue light that slowly spread wider and wider, finally ending when its sides touched side to side of the room.

Nearly immediately, magic returned to the area. Unlike the other windows that had opened, the magic was thick, spreading far. He could immediately tell the difference with this portal, why Nemesis had said a Demon Master could cross through with it. How had this mage accomplished such a powerful portal so fast when Terra was nearly dry?

Ranma and Kresh charged in, nearly recklessly as they wouldn't have much time to respond to traps. Ranma didn't care, knowing he needed to kill the one who opened it if he was to close it again before something could cross.

A rich voice laughed. "You are too late, Ranma Uzuki-Saotome. This is the end of your world! The end of you!"

"Bastard!" Ranma shouted, slicing where the man was standing. He felt his scythe come in contact with nothing, and the shape of the man vanished.

The man, recognizable as the same one who got away when he had killed One, laughed again, this time amused. "How terribly cliché was my taunt! Tis it not the very thing any villain shouts before he is unexpectedly defeated by the hero?"

Ranma stood with Kresh, looking around. He couldn't feel the aura of the mage, and by Kresh's inactivity, that meant he couldn't trace the man either. He wondered at the man's name, what number it might be if he was one of the twelve.

Considering the man seemed to enjoy talking, Ranma – standing before the light of the sickening window, humming its warning-drone – called out cautiously, "Who are you?"

"Who am I indeed," the man said, and a face appeared from one of the walls. The room was metal, bigger than expected for a military bunker, and the light from the window allowed no room for shadows. Yet, the man's face pealed out of the metal, hat included, and he grinned. "I am a day over two thousand and yet I still ask myself that very question."

Kresh's scimitar imbedded directly into the face, too fast for him to perceive the throw and dodge. There was no blood, and the mage didn't budge. He even continued speaking. "Now, now, hasty demon. I didn't finish." The face sank in, then reappeared next to the blade. "You may call me Eleven. How do you do!"

Ranma spun, and his scythe met a slender rapier. _What the hell? Illusions?_ The opponent blade had no wielder, and as Ranma forced it away in a powerful stroke, the metal clattered to the metal floor and vanished when it contacted the wall.

Still the portal hummed, an ever-reminding presence. At any moment a Demon Master could- _would_ be trying to slip through. If that happened, they were dead. The Senshi were dead. Earth, its inhabitants, everything. Dead.

Ranma was reminded of the Moon Kingdom's fall, when the kingdom was in ashes and half the planets already purged. Every moment delayed meant a moment where another planet died, a moment when he could have been elsewhere stopping the enemy. He remembered Venus, fighting a man called Plague. Hidden in the shadows, the planet dying of that deadly gas, super heating, the man playing deadly games with him.

Presently, Ranma was full to the brim with magic, his body tingling in an almost painful way as it ate away at him. The human body wasn't meant to be a battery. However, he was ready to use it. He called it all out, black energy beginning to swirl around him. Nemesis's magic in its raw state, but so much at once.

"Where is he?" he asked quietly, ready to blast the man apart. The voice laughed again, mockingly. Ranma deflected another blade, this time a sabre.

However, the question wasn't rhetorical. _"Avatar, let me show you what I see."_

The world shifted suddenly. Color drained away to blacks and whites – yet it did not. Ranma could see through walls, blurred shapes behind shapes behind shapes. He could tell from clarity how close something was in the silvery vision. Yet, his normal sight was there, blue portal and painted tan walls. The metallic floor. Both, at the same time, like looking through a different lens for either eye.

With this sudden change, Ranma noticed something adjacent to him on the back right. A man shape, creeping steadily, the head-shape facing him always. It's jaw moved when the voice spoke. Ranma resisted a smirk. _Gotcha._

He whirled, and all the magic around him turned into a superheated pillar of flame that hit right on target. Kresh saw his target and followed with blasts of spells Ranma couldn't identify, yet the metal walls exploded, causing a ruckus. The potent magic around them made such powerful spells easy.

Against the brightness of his own spell, Ranma was forced to close his eyes, yet the silver vision remained. He saw that the man had dodged – barely – and shifted the pillar of flame to him. There was a crackling sound, and Ranma could see a shield splitting the pillar. Kresh's blasts followed, and the shield burst. The voice around them cursed abruptly.

Ranma hit dry, yet he mechanically switched to that in the air. A bolt of lightning went for the man, and he saw the mage deflect it with a hand. A chunk of metal from the wall ripped off and slammed into him. Eleven was knocked off his feet and into a wall, and while it moved him from Kresh's spell, he seemed slumped.

The man stirred then, and he shouted a spell. Ranma's danger sense flared, warning him of something to his immediate right – where Kresh was – and he just barely dodged a spear thrust. His eyes widened when he saw Kresh standing there, animal-eyes vacant. "Kresh, wha-"

The demon lunged, and Ranma deflected the spear away again. Calling forward a wave of raw magic, Ranma knocked Kresh back. Immediately he found that a bad idea as the metal floor shattered into fragments, and those swirled into a metal frenzy around him, trying to sheer him to pieces.

Desperately reaching out for the magic around him to respond, Ranma made his intent something to stop the pieces. There was a burst of a cocoon of magic around him, and the pieces went flying away. Ranma's hand went to the tattoo on his shoulder. "You would try and attack your master!"

He called upon the symbol of his hold over the Urgoks, feeling his power of them, and he felt the link between him and Kresh. Something was on it, subtle yet fragile when compared to his hold over them. He snapped away the corrupted presence, that dark taint, and immediately Kresh stopped his assault.

However, the strain appeared to have weakened the demon, and Ranma watched Kresh teeter to the side before dropping his weapon and falling to his knees. Nearly growling, Ranma used Nemesis's sight to find the mage again. The man was on the other side of the window.

Ranma used magic to influence the floor there, and the grating bent in a sudden wave that took the mage from his feet. Eleven fell to the ground. Using Two as an example, Ranma also tried to have the ground swallow him whole, yet the man sealed the rift closed with a spell and was dodging to the side.

Putting his hands together again, Ranma called upon more of Nemesis's magic and gathered the energies for a _Fubuki Sousou._ Eleven, visible only to Nemesis's sight, was again on this side of the window. His features appeared to be... grinning. Ranma thrust his spell at him, the snowy orb now a blazing light of energy to Nemesis.

Eleven dodged to the side, but even so, he was caught in the explosion of the spell, and his body flew into a metal wall again. He didn't move.

Ranma checked the portal to see if they were done yet. Instead of the sides shrinking, however, he noticed something happening at the center of it. A dark shape broke through, only the beginning of a larger demon. Cursing, Ranma threw a second _Fubuki Sousou_, and it hit the demon square in the chest.

There was a squealing laughter, chillingly familiar to more faded memories. The fatigue of using that move twice so fast strained Ranma, but he saw a remarkable blast of magic – that powerful only because so much was leaking through the air – slam into the demon enough to send marginally into the portal. Part of it was still through.

Kresh was still downed, and he shook his demon head, lowering his arm. "I... can... do no... more."

Ranma sent a jet of flames at the downed Eleven, hoping it might close the portal, but the man jumped to his feet suddenly, and his spell canceled the flames. He moved towards the window, where the Demon Master was still inching through.

Despair settled in Ranma when the aura of the master reached him. There was no denying that it was a Demon Master then. Ranma had felt such power before. While the Greater Demonata he had faced before made small waves of magic pulse outwards, overwhelming tsunamis reached him. If they were any part physical, he would have to strain himself to remain standing against such powerful rolling waves.

That was, in Demonata terms, no more than the Demon Master's "exhales." The rest was so much more.

It was too soon to make out the identity of the approaching enemy, perhaps their Big Bad or perhaps only a key figure, but already it was much too late.

_Nemesis... What do I do? What can I do!_

He was alone now, the last of them left to face this threat. Ranma wanted to close his eyes until it was over, but already his body was itching for the fight. His grip on the scythe was tight, his muscles coiled, his stance ready. He knew already that he would fight to the very end. Queen Serenity's Ginzuisho was the only way they could win. However, he was far from defenseless.

_Beranabus said that they can be fought, if done right. The key was the magic... its heavier. Dammit, we are still on this side!_ Ranma stopped hesitating. It was do or die.

"_FUBUKI SOUSOU DOUBLE!"_ he shouted, thrusting both hands forward and barely managing to get the combination of ki, negative ki, and magic out in two separate attacks.

The two orbs were bigger than usual, a testament to the power Ranma was putting behind them, and even Eleven seemed startled by the attack, his eyes widening as they shot for the master. Two dark forms burst through the window on either side of the slowly approaching shape, however, both looking like almost dogs with their bent shapes, and they intercepted the attack.

The explosions whipped frosty air through the room, and frozen pieces of the demons went everywhere. A third followed the first too, and Ranma noticed the shapes were the Greater Demonata that seemed to trail the mages – of the New Batch. The white furred demon glared at him coldly.

_Do or die._

Ranma shot forward, and his scythe was in its stomach even before it could form its own scythe. The demon tried wrenching itself back, arm already coming up to swat him away in a quick and powerful blow. It hit him, but not before Ranma could invoke a spell inside its body that sent the demon into a sudden convulsion. It's chest bloated, then burst in a spray of guts and blood. Lava ate the pieces away.

Tapping into the potent magic of the air, Ranma brought as much together as he could handle mentally, trying to compress it before him, then compressing that again so that it was condensed, even heavier, and nearly solid even in its raw state. His exhausted body trembled with effort, but then Ranma sent the spell hurtling towards the Demon Master, now half out, a thin arm pointed at him.

Green light formed before the master, halting the spell, yet Ranma's efforts proved fruitful. The density of his shoved through the Demon Master's, and the demon grunted as it was forced back into the window a measure.

"You will not succeed, Ranma!" Eleven shouted, throwing a spell. Lightning followed.

Ranma avoided it easy enough, but apparently the Demon Master was still far enough for its own attacks. Ranma was still moving – faster than an untrained human eye could properly follow – when a clear splattering of liquid slammed into him. The globs slapped onto him like wads of hot glue or wax, burning even as they clung, yet the force behind them wasn't slowed upon contact, and Ranma found himself thrown back and into the metal wall.

The plates of his Senshi armor protected him, leaving a huge impression in the wall. Even with his weight, the force had still countered his and taken him from his feet. He popped himself out, intending to land on his feet, but suddenly a second spell followed, and Ranma felt his neck break as it hit the side of his head, whipping his head to the side without the body.

Though disoriented from the blow, Ranma unconsciously healed the damage as it happened – perhaps Nemesis was at work there – and he felt his neck snap into proper shape without his influence. Still, that – had – hurt.

Ranma rolled under the next spell, reaching for magic from either side of the room and drawing it together, then throwing it at the Demon Master. He sent a strip of metal from the ground and towards Eleven like a spear, the force behind it unbelievably fast. The surprise attack was successful, impaling the man into the wall even as the Demon Master was forced back another inch, grunting again.

Eleven gasped, hands coming to the metal. The rigid, thin arm of the master pointed at the man, however, and before Ranma could realize it, the metal strip was glancing off his breastplate. A deep gouge was left in the armor. In _black copper._ Eleven fell to the floor, but his hands came away from his wound without blood, likely healed from the master as well.

"Fuck this!" Ranma shouted. He couldn't even fight on one front, let alone two. He didn't stop his manipulation of the heavy magic around him, pulling it together and unleashing it at the Demon Master. He also sent staggering blasts at Eleven.

For a moment, Ranma gained a lead. His quick, powerful blasts halted the Demon Master, and Eleven was sent bouncing around the room, his body a rag doll living through its torment only due to the Demon Master's efforts – hopefully distracting it even partially from the main fight. Eleven blocked some of the attacks, but he didn't have time for anything meaningful enough to match Ranma's.

Everything changed when the Demon Master gave a loud snort. All the metal of the room bent outward in a sudden burst – walls curved out, the floor sinking down – as if a cylindrical force shoved through, overwhelming the thick metal. Ranma immediately found why, slamming against the far wall as crushing pressure hit him.

It was a dozen times worse than what Crystal had done to him to defeat him when he had worked for Metaria. Ranma felt his organs flattening, his metal bending. Even the shaft of the scythe in his hand was cutting into his palm, cutting off circulation even as it threatened to crack his bones. He felt like his head might pop like a balloon against this.

"OH, NO YOU DON'T! YA SMELLY PORKER!" a voice bellowed.

Ranma's vision was too distorted to make out details. There was a flash... of some color he couldn't make out. Then his vision blackened entirely for a few moments. When the blurry world returned, he was on his hands and knees on the warped metal floor, free of the Demon Master's spell. He blacked out again, and then the room was dark, no longer with the blue window.

A grinning face.

An offered hand, with lumpy joints.

Two stones lying side by side.

Another black out.

XxX

"_When you are standing in the hospital after two friends are brought to the very brink of death."_

Setsuna sighed, rising from her chair. How she hated that Crystal Tokyo, that shade of herself that instigated it and planted these awful seeds. Michiru and Ami were still unconscious – deep in coma, the doctors had said, with no sign of coming out any time soon. Michiru had been fried, the electrochemical firings of her brain going haywire during the lightning attack in a manner similar to a seizure while leaving damage behind.

Ami had been clouted in a fatal way. The doctors said that considering the internal damage to the occipital lobe, she should have been dead – bled out with a cracked skull to get that kind of injury. Somehow – a miracle – the damage was strictly internal, and she may recover. If she did, her sight was at risk.

Setsuna wanted to consider that Queen Meioh was only playing mind games with her, warning her of the things she knew would happen as a way of convincing her towards that future. Nearly fifty percent was that future, and nearly fifty percent was unavoidable destruction. If there was some way out, some other path the letter was trying for, Setsuna was afraid it might be too narrow for her to ever consider it. She didn't want to give up, but already a cookie-cut victory had been laid out for her, at the small price of a river of blood and treachery.

She still couldn't see a world without Ranma in it, not now that she had him back. If her heart was destined for Mamoru, they would certainly have a shaky start. Their date hadn't been particularly eye-opening. The man was still in mourning over Usagi.

Touching Michiru's shoulder, Setsuna's mind fell back to the bunker. Even she had been able to feel the currents of magic around them, powerful as it was. Flashes of the slaughter of Ranma cutting through the soldiers, the horror when the lightning was approaching them and her not ready to defend against it. Michiru going down. Ami going down. Ranma coming back, unconscious, slung over a stranger's shoulder.

_What happened? How could we have been so outmatched, so unprepared?_ She sat on the hospital bed, gently stroking Michiru's hair as her thoughts turned. It was good that Haruka was gone. She would be beside herself in grief and rage at the moment.

Sighing, Setsuna stood from the bed. She wished both girls luck, hoping it would get across to them, then left the room. Ranma was waiting for her in the hall, and they walked together. He had that ridiculous bag over his shoulder again, hiding his scythe.

"And you don't find it the least suspicious that while you – _you,_ Ranma – are getting tossed around by the Demon Master, some average human comes and stops it?" Setsuna asked finally, already feeling the beginnings of a migraine.

"Of course I do," he said. "It's why I have Kresh sitting on him. This guy is nearly insane."

Setsuna shivered, remembering the reason the Urgok wasn't with them. Two small lodestones had been found, which had made the whole Demon Master window possible. One had been given to Kresh, so he no longer had to remain glued to Ranma's side, while the other... The next part of her letter was coming up.

Setsuna didn't know what lodestones were, but she knew what they did. They looked no different than any other stone, especially these two nondescript grey rocks, but both produced magic to extents Setsuna had never seen. Like what Ranma's scythe, Nemesis's new body, did, except a dozen times stronger each.

"Ranma, that other lodestone," she started, but Ranma smiled suddenly.

"I know. I can use it to destroy the barrier. Terra will still be too weak for anyone to capitalize on her recovering magic, so all we do is save the planet – literally, from a different threat. Nemesis agrees that we have the juice for it."

Setsuna knew that without the letter, she'd have no idea what to say to this proposal. In fact, even with the letter, she still didn't know a thing about it, but she trusted herself. "You can't."

Ranma looked at her, frowning. "Setsuna, what's been with you? At that bunker first you were saying that the girls couldn't go on just because two were injured, now you are saying that I can't do this? Why would I _not_ stop the crippling forcing holding Terra captive and bleeding her life away?"

"I wanted you to stop before the second was hospitalized," she said quietly, then shook her head. "Ranma, if the barrier is destroyed, it results in destruction as surely as leaving it in its present state. The only option I've come up with is if we alter it, change the barrier in some way that won't kill us while also allowing Earth to begin recovering."

Terra. Ranma said he had met the sentience of Earth, a second planetary being like Nemesis. There had always been rumors of Terra being out there, but Setsuna had never in her many thousands of years seen her or any trace of her. She would almost doubt his word if she didn't _know_ him and all the bizarre things that could happen to and near him. The Chaos Generator.

He frowned at her words now, one hand coming to the strap of his bag. "I'll discuss it with Nemesis and maybe Terra if we encounter her again. I don't see how there could be any short-term effects of destroying the barrier, but you've given good advice before."

She smiled slightly. "It's a barrier, Ranma. Destroy it, and it no longer keeps out whatever it was meant to."

He blinked in surprise, then laughed. "Quit making me look like an idiot."

They exited the hospital.

XxX

The man appeared in his mid-twenties, black hair cut short, skin smooth and lightly tanned, his eyes a bright green not commonly found among the Japanese. His build was lean, stringy almost, while he was quite short for a male. The features of his face were rounded, but his brow line and nose were sharp, stern, even while his mouth and jaw seemed full and jolly. An odd looking fellow.

"What's your name?" Ranma asked, crossing his arms.

It was the man that had supposedly helped him out against the Demon Master. He smiled at Ranma. "Keyzak."

Crystal was there, as was Kresh, Setsuna, Yuka, and little Hotaru. They didn't want to hold the questioning at Setsuna's house, and each had returned to their Senshi forms after leaving the hospital. Despite his apparent good intentions, none of them trusted this man. Still in the dead of night, they were at the park.

"Who are you?" Ranma continued. The man seemed honest enough, nothing untrustworthy in his expression, yet how could a random man, experienced in magic, stumble across Ranma's fight at the crucial moment without the others noticing him pass when they were at the staircase. He couldn't be Beranabus', since the man only had Yuudai in Japan. Not to mention, Eleven had a skill in controlling minds, and he wasn't above taking those who could use magic.

Keyzak leaned back, still smiling. "A survivor. The kind that will do nearly anything to survive. Unfortunately, I've picked up a bit of a paranoia as well, but it's what's kept me around this long, so I don't think I can complain."

Ranma paused his next question, instead wanting him to expand. "And what have you needed to survive?"

The man's smile widened, and he now leaned forward, eyes twinkling. "I know who you are, Senshi. I'm either crazier than I thought, or you are the Senshi of Nemesis, and Pluto, and Saturn, and you, darling, are the Queen herself, in an outfit not at all befitting. Or at least, you all bear an uncanny resemblance. Memory tends to distort over the years, you know."

"A survivor of the Moon Kingdom," Crystal breathed in realization.

Ranma frowned, considering Feyri and Saffron. "What planet?"

"Why, Earth, of course," he said. "Terrible times here when the Kingdom fell, you know. The nobility were assassinated, the states shattered, unity fell into calamity. The Confusion, as I call it it, when everyone was fighting everyone while drifters and survivors like myself tried to stay low enough to avoid being caught in the crossfire. Then the barbarians, biggest horde I have ever seen, which swept away the civilized and destroyed as much technology as they could. Led by revolutionists tired of the anarchy, tired of those that could lord luxurious tech over others, and... some other reasons, I don't very well remember now."

Ranma looked to the others, and Setsuna shrugged a shoulder. "It is similar to how I remember the following years."

Turning to the man again, seeing him still grinning, Ranma said, "Alright, Keyzak, how did you stop that Demon Master? There is no way you should have had the strength."

"Stop him? No, no, no. Can't stop one of those, no sir. Sire. My lord? Bah, been too long. No, you see, I simply snip, snipped the spell holding that window open, and then he had to choose to finish crossing and die without magic or go back. A rather cowardly move if I say so myself, since I would never quite actually risk myself if I wasn't sure I could get away."

Ranma stared at him, checking for deception. The situation could have been staged by Eleven and his master, set for infiltration into their ranks. However, the Master was only moments from crossing. It would have made more sense to simply finish, if the destruction of mankind was its goal. Perhaps something else then?

He didn't want to consider that, but he needed to speak with Nemesis about its possibility.

"And what do you want, then?" Ranma asked.

Keyzak tilted his head side to side. "I don't quite know, you know? I saw on the telly news about the Senshi- excuse me, the 'Sailor Scouts,' and thought I had finally hit the bottom of the deep end. But time passed and others confirmed, who I very well thought were hallucinations at first, and slowly I allowed myself to believe. Best hallucination of my life, you know?

"Anyways, I felt the good old 'stirrings of trouble' down south and made my way on over, figuring, well, I like these more peaceful days, and a Demon Master coming out here would just put a damper on my whole survivability. And so when I saw you in a spot, I did my thing and ran out, then came back to see if we won. We did, eh?"

Ranma looked to Crystal, who shook her head. She stepped towards the man. "We thank you, Keyzak, for the help. We ask that you go home now and don't seek us out again. I hope it doesn't offend you, but we are-"

"Oh, no, no, no. My Queen," he interrupted, throwing a salute across his chest at the title. It wasn't proper form, the arm crooked from the normal horizontal. Setsuna shifted in place at it. "-forgive me, my Queen, but I hope to never come across you again. You're the guardians, I'm the guarded. I don't want any fights. Risking my life is a bit of a no at this point, ya know?"

"I see. Well then, we bid you good night and farewell. Thank you again, Keyzak," she finished, and the man jumped to his feet, nearly startling them. He performed another off-salute, this time punctuated with a short bow, then he scurried off. There was a sound like a giggle from him as he vanished.

Ranma stared after him. "Now there's a man I'd sleep much sounder if he were dead."

"You wouldn't have the ability to do much sleeping if he hadn't come in the first place, however," Crystal said, taking the man's place in the chair.

"Which is what worries me the most," Setsuna said from her place. "I don't know how much we can trust of him. He could be another of the twelve mages or a pet of Eleven, by what Ranma said of him. Perhaps it wouldn't be safe to let him go."

Crystal tilted her head back and closed her eyes, sighing. "Ethical jargon; it's only right that a hero be given the benefit of the doubt, something, something, cruel if we were to condemn him on suspicion after heroism. Can't rightfully stop him."

Ranma reached for his scythe. "I can."

Crystal opened her eyes, smiling tiredly at him. "I ask that you don't. Now, your suspicions earlier were correct. There were two attempts at crossings out here. Galruk and I stopped them both, but it was not a fun occasion."

Ranma nodded. "Thank you for staying. Next time, though, I will need you with me." He paused. "Crystal, I'm sure you've heard about Mercury and Neptune by now. Could you...?"

The silver haired woman lifted her Ginzuisho. "I'll see to them tonight before I retire."

He smiled at her, then turned to Setsuna. "Sorry about your date tonight. Next time should go better." He wondered how heartfelt his apology was.

The woman smiled at him, then shook her head. "It's no matter. This was obviously much more important... and I doubt anything will come of the Terran Prince and I." Anything to separate her further from Crystal Tokyo. "I only wish I was more useful there. I... don't know why I froze up at the end."

"It's fine." He addressed the room and held up a rock in his left hand, plain grey and the size of a human head. "Now, this. The second lodestone. I'm going to hold onto it for now. It'll be a little power boost, but mainly Nemesis and I are going to work out a way to alter the barrier surrounding Earth. Also, tonight, I'm calling back Xycell and Haruka. I need another Urgok."

"Ran-" Setsuna started to say, but she cut off when Crystal spoke at the same time, asking, "What about the training?"

"There will be another break tomorrow, just so the girls have some time to get over this. But Crystal, I need you to keep working on crafting those spells. Today a Demon Master almost crossed, and he smeared me across the floor. We need something that can stop Big Bad."

She nodded. Setsuna spoke then, softer, "Ranma, after the barrier... you need to destroy the second lodestone."

He looked at her, raising an eyebrow. "Why?" Setsuna merely pulled out the letter and gestured towards it. Ranma, however, shook his head. "But _why?_ This is a benefit to our side, not theirs. Destroying it only takes away our advantage, and we need every one of those. Unless you can actually give me a reason, Setsuna, I'm holding onto this."

"Sometimes it isn't explicitly obvious, Ranma, but I trust that Setsuna to do and say what she thinks is best for us," Crystal put in. "I don't yet see a reason for it myself, but circumstances can change in time, and that is her domain."

Ranma bounced it in his hand. "Well, forgive me for being stubborn, but until those circumstances change, I'm holding onto this. With this I can access magic as powerful as what I get from Nemesis, without the drawbacks. What the girls are calling the 'sickness.' It's no Ginzuisho, but it'll get me by just the same."

Setsuna felt frustrated by his choice, but she couldn't fault him. She also remembered him with his disabled hand; they wouldn't win this argument here. _You damnable man. Don't be wrong._

XxX

"After only a couple of months, honored guest already can move so easy in training ground, even with all his weights on. Outside room, your eyes and mind have adjusted to new speed. You have beaten me, and I deem your training here finished. Now, your oath?" Urtec intoned, bruised and battered as they sat at the dining room table inside the Terran Palace.

Ryoga, also battered, smirked – one fang peaking out. _Like it'll ever happen. I have you beat now, Ranma. _"To serve the Serenity line if ever called upon to do so. To defend the Queen and follow her orders. To uphold the Kingdom in the ways I see best."

"Then honored guest may go in peace, and may he find much joy and honor in life following." The monk smiled, leaning back with his cup of tea in hand. He lifted the cup. "To a friend."

Ryoga tapped his cup against his. _"Kanpai."_

He was coming back now, a whole lot stronger and ready to take on the new Ranma. His rival wouldn't even see it coming. His speed would make sure of that.

XxX

"Lykaios, go!" a woman shouted, falling to her knees after fleeing through the portal. Cuts and wounds littered her face and form, one arm twisted unnaturally.

A man followed her out, literally flying in a reckless dive that had him tumbling onto the asphalt. He wore armor, but his arms were scraped into worse condition than he already was. Immediately the woman thrust her working hand at the window, sealing it shut again. As it was still closing, however, a roaring demon shot out at her, unnaturally large fangs gnashing as they went for her face.

The woman gave a cry and called upon magic, swatting it from the air in a small blast of air. The demon landed and whirled towards her, but a dagger suddenly blossomed in its forehead. It squealed loudly, but a second followed, and a third. "I'm out," the man called, his exhaustion evident in his voice.

It was enough though, and the demon gave a death-whimper before collapsing, tongue lolling out of its mouth. The woman and the man both panted, noticing the dark of night, the stars of the human universe. The buildings around them were of human make, innocent and harmless. They had made it back alive.

The man laughed, but it was a bitter sound. Finishing up, he asked, "What now, Athena?"

The woman shook black hair from her dark eyes and looked down at her ruined elbow. "We can't take him by ourselves. That much is obvious. Remember the man here I pointed out before?"

"The one you called Reaper?" Lykaios asked.

Athena smiled, the gesture not diminishing the hardness of her face. "We are going to meet him."

* * *

AN: I've got this odd feeling "posting against my better judgment" is going to become a reoccurring theme for the rest of the story. But... finishing this damn chapter makes me too eager to just wait around for more. Was halfway through this chapter before I got a little discouraged and sorta left this story alone and now only recently came back to finish it.

Ja, the story is picking up now. You know, it was the oddest thing making the setting of the 'climax' of the chapter away from Juuban, like it was wrong to do so, but... that doesn't even make sense. Honestly, no logically thinking enemy with access to distant locations would confine him/herself to such an easily countered location as the heroes' home base...

Anyways, I apologize for the long wait. 43k word chapter for you. I should be back in this now. Hopefully.

-Sub


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